republic-os/legislation/us/states/in/2021/sb-55.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "School referenda."
description: "Provides that an examination of the accounts and financial affairs of a school corporation must include an examination of any revenue spending plan and applicable fund for an operating referendum tax levy or school safety referendum tax levy to determine whether the school corporation is using the revenue collected from the levy in the amounts and for the purposes established in the applicable revenue spending plan. Provides that a contract entered into between the governing body of a school corporation and a school administrator may not provide for the awarding of a monetary bonus or other incentive that is based on the approval of a public question concerning the imposition of a property tax levy. Specifies requirements for a school corporation that adopts a revenue spending plan for a proposed referendum tax levy. Provides that a school corporation shall specify in its proposed budget the school corporation's revenue spending plan and present the revenue spending plan at its public hearing on the proposed budget. Provides that an ordinance or resolution making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into leases that is considered for certain controlled projects must include a statement of: (1) the maximum annual debt service for the controlled project for each year in which the debt service will be paid; and (2) the schedule of the estimated annual tax levy and rate over a 10 year period; factoring in changes that will occur to the debt service levy and tax rate during the period on account of any outstanding bonds or lease obligations that will mature or terminate during the period. Provides that a governing body may not increase the debt service fund levy to pay for the interest on warrants unless the warrants have been authorized by the governing body in a resolution adopted at a public meeting in the year immediately preceding the year in which the warrants will be issued. Requires a school corporation that imposes certain property taxes to provide information to the department of local government finance before a public hearing held for the purpose of determining the school corporation's budget."
jurisdiction: "us/states/in"
legislature: "Indiana General Assembly"
session: "2021"
identifier: "SB 55"
citation: "Indiana SB 55 (2021)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["EDUCATION", "State Superintendent", "State Department and Boards", "LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND FINANCE", "DEPARTMENT OF (DLGF)", "SCHOOLS", "Funds and Budgets", "SCHOOLS", "Officers and Employees (other than teachers)"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Blake Doriot", "Jake Teshka", "Mike Bohacek"]
version_count: 5
action_count: 38
vote_count: 1
first_action: "2021-01-04"
last_action: "2021-04-29"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/a3d784ed-1585-431b-95ca-a2be74c80747"
source_url: "http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2021/bills/senate/55"
source_hash: "12ab7bcb9e0ef3d3d196f2bc05b274300a499cf9fadc7a70d18f088c9ae5da07"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-in"]
---

# Indiana SB 55 (2021) — School referenda.

Provides that an examination of the accounts and financial affairs of a school corporation must include an examination of any revenue spending plan and applicable fund for an operating referendum tax levy or school safety referendum tax levy to determine whether the school corporation is using the revenue collected from the levy in the amounts and for the purposes established in the applicable revenue spending plan. Provides that a contract entered into between the governing body of a school corporation and a school administrator may not provide for the awarding of a monetary bonus or other incentive that is based on the approval of a public question concerning the imposition of a property tax levy. Specifies requirements for a school corporation that adopts a revenue spending plan for a proposed referendum tax levy. Provides that a school corporation shall specify in its proposed budget the school corporation's revenue spending plan and present the revenue spending plan at its public hearing on the proposed budget. Provides that an ordinance or resolution making a preliminary determination to issue bonds or enter into leases that is considered for certain controlled projects must include a statement of: (1) the maximum annual debt service for the controlled project for each year in which the debt service will be paid; and (2) the schedule of the estimated annual tax levy and rate over a 10 year period; factoring in changes that will occur to the debt service levy and tax rate during the period on account of any outstanding bonds or lease obligations that will mature or terminate during the period. Provides that a governing body may not increase the debt service fund levy to pay for the interest on warrants unless the warrants have been authorized by the governing body in a resolution adopted at a public meeting in the year immediately preceding the year in which the warrants will be issued. Requires a school corporation that imposes certain property taxes to provide information to the department of local government finance before a public hearing held for the purpose of determining the school corporation's budget.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Enrolled Senate Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2021/bills/SB0055/versions/SB0055.05.ENRH)
2. **Introduced Senate Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2021/bills/SB0055/versions/SB0055.01.INTR)
3. **Senate Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2021/bills/SB0055/versions/SB0055.04.COMH)
4. **Senate Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2021/bills/SB0055/versions/SB0055.02.COMS)
5. **Senate Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2021/bills/SB0055/versions/SB0055.03.COMS)

## Votes

- SB 55 - Teshka J - 3rd Reading — **96–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Blake Doriot — primary (person)
- Jake Teshka — primary (person)
- Mike Bohacek — primary (person)
- Lonnie Randolph — coauthor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2021-01-04** Authored by Senator Bohacek
- **2021-01-04** First reading: referred to Committee on Education and Career Development `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2021-02-04** Committee report: amend do pass adopted; reassigned to Committee on Tax and Fiscal Policy `committee-passage, referral-committee`
- **2021-02-16** Committee report: amend do pass, adopted `committee-passage`
- **2021-02-18** Second reading: ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2021-02-22** Senator Doriot added as second author
- **2021-02-22** Senator Randolph added as coauthor
- **2021-02-22** Third reading: passed; Roll Call 147: yeas 43, nays 6 `passage, reading-3`
- **2021-02-22** House sponsor: Representative Teshka
- **2021-02-23** Referred to the House
- **2021-03-04** First reading: referred to Committee on Education `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2021-03-25** Committee report: amend do pass, adopted `committee-passage`
- **2021-04-01** Amendment #2 (Harris) motion withdrawn `amendment-failure, amendment-withdrawal`
- **2021-04-01** Second reading: ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2021-04-05** Third reading: passed; Roll Call 349: yeas 96, nays 0 `passage, reading-3`
- **2021-04-06** Returned to the Senate with amendments `amendment-failure`
- **2021-04-12** Motion to dissent filed
- **2021-04-12** Senate dissented from House amendments `amendment-failure`
- **2021-04-13** House conferees appointed: Teshka and Smith V
- **2021-04-13** House advisors appointed: Thompson, Jordan and DeLaney
- **2021-04-13** Senate conferees appointed: Bohacek and Qaddoura
- **2021-04-13** Senate advisors appointed: Doriot and Melton
- **2021-04-21** Senator Doriot removed as advisor
- **2021-04-21** Senator Qaddoura removed as conferee
- **2021-04-21** Senator Doriot added as conferee
- **2021-04-21** Senator Zay added as advisor
- **2021-04-21** Representative Thompson removed as advisor
- **2021-04-21** Representative Smith V removed as conferee
- **2021-04-21** Representative Thompson added as conferee
- **2021-04-21** CCR # 1 filed in the Senate
- **2021-04-21** CCR # 1 filed in the House
- **2021-04-21** Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the Senate; Roll Call 483: yeas 45, nays 4
- **2021-04-21** Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the House; Roll Call 499: yeas 91, nays 0
- **2021-04-23** Signed by the President Pro Tempore
- **2021-04-28** Signed by the Speaker
- **2021-04-28** Signed by the President of the Senate
- **2021-04-29** Signed by the Governor `executive-signature`
- **2021-04-29** Public Law 136

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/a3d784ed-1585-431b-95ca-a2be74c80747`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Indiana legislature records).