republic-os/legislation/us/states/in/2023/hb-1647.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "Athletic trainers."
description: "Amends the definition of \"athletic trainer\" to include an individual employed by an occupational facility to practice athletic training. Amends the definition of \"athletic training\" to include the diagnosis and rehabilitation of athletic injuries under the direction and supervision of a licensed physician, osteopath, podiatrist, or chiropractor, including the use of manual therapies related to the reconditioning of athletes, but not including joint manipulation of the spinal column. Defines \"manual therapies\" and \"supervision\". Changes the education standard for licensing by the board as an athletic trainer from the satisfactory completion of an academic program including certain accredited courses to: (1) obtaining a professional athletic training degree from a postsecondary educational institution that meets the academic standards established by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE); and (2) the successful completion of a Board of Certification, Inc. (BOC) examination. Provides that an individual may be exempted by the board from the examination requirement if the individual is certified by the BOC (instead of by the National Athletic Trainers Association) and authorizes the board to issue a temporary permit to practice as an athletic trainer to an individual who is practicing in a state that does not license or certify athletic trainers but is certified by the BOC (instead of by the National Athletic Trainers Association). Eliminates the requirement that the board contract with the National Athletic Trainers Association to conduct and score the qualifying examination for athletic trainers."
jurisdiction: "us/states/in"
legislature: "Indiana General Assembly"
session: "2023"
identifier: "HB 1647"
citation: "Indiana HB 1647 (2023)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["ATHLETIC TRAINERS"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Chris Garten", "David Niezgodski", "Gary Byrne", "Robert Morris"]
version_count: 5
action_count: 31
vote_count: 1
first_action: "2023-01-19"
last_action: "2023-05-04"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/0718b985-3cff-49ed-af3b-d154b98097ac"
source_url: "http://iga.in.gov/legislative/2023/bills/house/1647"
source_hash: "a62bfe33884e396e4a95133a9a9700def0829f130137aee66ae044418440d02c"
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 HB 1647 (2023) — Athletic trainers.

Amends the definition of "athletic trainer" to include an individual employed by an occupational facility to practice athletic training. Amends the definition of "athletic training" to include the diagnosis and rehabilitation of athletic injuries under the direction and supervision of a licensed physician, osteopath, podiatrist, or chiropractor, including the use of manual therapies related to the reconditioning of athletes, but not including joint manipulation of the spinal column. Defines "manual therapies" and "supervision". Changes the education standard for licensing by the board as an athletic trainer from the satisfactory completion of an academic program including certain accredited courses to: (1) obtaining a professional athletic training degree from a postsecondary educational institution that meets the academic standards established by the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE); and (2) the successful completion of a Board of Certification, Inc. (BOC) examination. Provides that an individual may be exempted by the board from the examination requirement if the individual is certified by the BOC (instead of by the National Athletic Trainers Association) and authorizes the board to issue a temporary permit to practice as an athletic trainer to an individual who is practicing in a state that does not license or certify athletic trainers but is certified by the BOC (instead of by the National Athletic Trainers Association). Eliminates the requirement that the board contract with the National Athletic Trainers Association to conduct and score the qualifying examination for athletic trainers.

## Version chain

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

1. **Engrossed House Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2023/bills/HB1647/versions/HB1647.03.ENGH)
2. **Enrolled House Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2023/bills/HB1647/versions/HB1647.05.ENRS)
3. **House Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2023/bills/HB1647/versions/HB1647.02.COMH)
4. **House Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2023/bills/HB1647/versions/HB1647.04.COMS)
5. **Introduced House Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](http://in-proxy.openstates.org/2023/bills/HB1647/versions/HB1647.01.INTR)

## Votes

- HB 1647 - Byrne - 3rd Reading — **39–8** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Chris Garten — primary (person)
- David Niezgodski — primary (person)
- Gary Byrne — primary (person)
- Robert Morris — primary (person)
- Chris Judy — coauthor (person)
- Edmond Soliday — coauthor (person)
- Jim Pressel — coauthor (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2023-01-19** Authored by Representative Morris
- **2023-01-19** First reading: referred to Committee on Environmental Affairs `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2023-01-23** Representatives Soliday, Pressel, Judy added as coauthors
- **2023-02-16** Committee report: amend do pass, adopted `committee-passage`
- **2023-02-20** Second reading: ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2023-02-21** Placed back on second reading
- **2023-02-23** Amendment #2 (Morris) prevailed; voice vote `amendment-passage`
- **2023-02-23** Reread second time: amended, ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2023-02-27** Third reading: passed; Roll Call 248: yeas 75, nays 19 `passage, reading-3, reading-3`
- **2023-02-27** Senate sponsors: Senators Byrne, Garten, Niezgodski
- **2023-02-28** Referred to the Senate `referral`
- **2023-03-06** First reading: referred to Committee on Environmental Affairs `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2023-03-28** Committee report: amend do pass, adopted `committee-passage`
- **2023-03-30** Second reading: ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2023-04-03** Third reading: passed; Roll Call 297: yeas 39, nays 8 `passage, reading-3, reading-3`
- **2023-04-04** Returned to the House with amendments `receipt`
- **2023-04-10** Motion to dissent filed `filing`
- **2023-04-10** House dissented from Senate amendments
- **2023-04-11** House conferees appointed: Morris and Errington
- **2023-04-11** House advisors appointed: Soliday, Jeter, Pressel and Bauer M
- **2023-04-13** Senate conferees appointed: Garten and Niezgodski
- **2023-04-13** Senate advisors appointed: Yoder and Byrne
- **2023-04-27** CCR # 1 filed in the House `filing`
- **2023-04-27** CCR # 1 filed in the Senate `filing`
- **2023-04-27** Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the House; Roll Call 544: yeas 93, nays 1
- **2023-04-27** Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the Senate; Roll Call 522: yeas 49, nays 1
- **2023-04-28** Signed by the President Pro Tempore `passage`
- **2023-04-28** Signed by the President of the Senate `passage`
- **2023-05-01** Signed by the Speaker `passage`
- **2023-05-04** Public Law 252 `became-law`
- **2023-05-04** Signed by the Governor `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/0718b985-3cff-49ed-af3b-d154b98097ac`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Indiana legislature records).