republic-os/legislation/us/states/in/2026/hb-1249.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "Various criminal law matters."
description: "Provides that if a person has one prior OWI conviction, the court shall order that the person be imprisoned for at least 10 days or perform community service, and if a person has two prior OWI convictions, the court shall order that the person be imprisoned for at least 20 days or perform community service. Provides that a person receives good time credit while serving a sentence imposed under this statute (under current law, a person does not receive good time credit). Provides that this statute does not increase the maximum sentence for the offense as provided by either IC 35-50-2 or IC 35-50-3. Specifies that \"vehicle\", for purposes of the crime of operating while intoxicated, includes a watercraft, and repeals the separate crime of operating a motorboat while intoxicated. Provides that an initial hearing may be waived and allows a person to apply for a specialized driving privilege after an initial hearing. Adds operating while intoxicated due to use of a controlled substance to the habitual traffic violator statute. Requires a law enforcement officer to offer a chemical test that includes a blood test to any person who the officer has reason to believe operated a vehicle that was involved in a fatal accident. Specifies that ignition interlock devices may only be used when the underlying offense is operating while intoxicated resulting from the use of alcohol. Specifies that certain provisions do not prevent an otherwise eligible individual from applying for a specialized driving privilege after the initial hearing. Increases the penalty for battery on certain health care employees and school employees. Specifies that the enhancement for battery committed against a department of child services (DCS) employee applies only to those DCS employees whose responsibilities include personally supervising a child or parent, personally providing services to a child or parent, or personally interviewing a child or parent as part of an investigation. Requires the employer of a health care or school employee who is the victim of battery to make a semiannual report to the department of labor concerning workplace batteries. Provides that certain uses of a drone constitute remote aerial harassment. Specifies that a child charged with dangerous possession of a firearm may be tried by a juvenile court under certain circumstances. Makes dangerous possession of a firearm a Level 5 felony if the child: (1) has a prior conviction for unlawful carrying of a handgun; or (2) possesses the firearm on school property, within 500 feet of a school, or on a school bus. Specifies that certain individuals may not be subject to a county residency requirement, including a public defender (except for the chief public defender), court personnel, and a deputy prosecuting attorney. Prohibits the release of personally identifying information concerning a railroad crew in a public report concerning a railroad fatality. Repeals provisions that require: (1) the department of education to maintain a public data base concerning public school employees who were physically injured on the job by students; and (2) each public school to provide to the department of education information concerning certain public school employees physically injured on the job by a student."
jurisdiction: "us/states/in"
legislature: "Indiana General Assembly"
session: "2026"
identifier: "HB 1249"
citation: "Indiana HB 1249 (2026)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["CORRECTIONS; Juvenile Inmates and Facilities", "COURTS; Juvenile Courts", "FIREARMS AND WEAPONS"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Aaron Freeman", "Alex Zimmerman"]
version_count: 4
action_count: 28
vote_count: 4
first_action: "2026-01-05"
last_action: "2026-03-12"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/6697c951-c2ab-437c-ac8e-cb1361e28826"
source_url: "https://api.iga.in.gov/2026/bills/hb1249"
source_hash: "e965e9955de329ce18a9a5d0d518914fbb48419942ded9248df8a9ba130d7c4b"
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 1249 (2026) — Various criminal law matters.

Provides that if a person has one prior OWI conviction, the court shall order that the person be imprisoned for at least 10 days or perform community service, and if a person has two prior OWI convictions, the court shall order that the person be imprisoned for at least 20 days or perform community service. Provides that a person receives good time credit while serving a sentence imposed under this statute (under current law, a person does not receive good time credit). Provides that this statute does not increase the maximum sentence for the offense as provided by either IC 35-50-2 or IC 35-50-3. Specifies that "vehicle", for purposes of the crime of operating while intoxicated, includes a watercraft, and repeals the separate crime of operating a motorboat while intoxicated. Provides that an initial hearing may be waived and allows a person to apply for a specialized driving privilege after an initial hearing. Adds operating while intoxicated due to use of a controlled substance to the habitual traffic violator statute. Requires a law enforcement officer to offer a chemical test that includes a blood test to any person who the officer has reason to believe operated a vehicle that was involved in a fatal accident. Specifies that ignition interlock devices may only be used when the underlying offense is operating while intoxicated resulting from the use of alcohol. Specifies that certain provisions do not prevent an otherwise eligible individual from applying for a specialized driving privilege after the initial hearing. Increases the penalty for battery on certain health care employees and school employees. Specifies that the enhancement for battery committed against a department of child services (DCS) employee applies only to those DCS employees whose responsibilities include personally supervising a child or parent, personally providing services to a child or parent, or personally interviewing a child or parent as part of an investigation. Requires the employer of a health care or school employee who is the victim of battery to make a semiannual report to the department of labor concerning workplace batteries. Provides that certain uses of a drone constitute remote aerial harassment. Specifies that a child charged with dangerous possession of a firearm may be tried by a juvenile court under certain circumstances. Makes dangerous possession of a firearm a Level 5 felony if the child: (1) has a prior conviction for unlawful carrying of a handgun; or (2) possesses the firearm on school property, within 500 feet of a school, or on a school bus. Specifies that certain individuals may not be subject to a county residency requirement, including a public defender (except for the chief public defender), court personnel, and a deputy prosecuting attorney. Prohibits the release of personally identifying information concerning a railroad crew in a public report concerning a railroad fatality. Repeals provisions that require: (1) the department of education to maintain a public data base concerning public school employees who were physically injured on the job by students; and (2) each public school to provide to the department of education information concerning certain public school employees physically injured on the job by a student.

## Version chain

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

1. **Enrolled House Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://iga.in.gov/pdf-documents/124/2026/house/bills/HB1249/HB1249.04.ENRS.pdf)
2. **House Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://iga.in.gov/pdf-documents/124/2026/house/bills/HB1249/HB1249.03.COMS.pdf)
3. **House Bill (S)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://iga.in.gov/pdf-documents/124/2026/house/bills/HB1249/HB1249.02.COMH.pdf)
4. **Introduced House Bill (H)** (committee substitute) — [source](https://iga.in.gov/pdf-documents/124/2026/house/bills/HB1249/HB1249.01.INTR.pdf)

## Votes

- HB 1249 - Zimmerman - 3rd Reading — **74–18** (pass) · lower
- HB 1249 - Zimmerman — **96–0** (pass) · lower
- HB 1249 - Freeman - 3rd Reading — **46–0** (pass) · upper
- HB 1249 - Freeman — **43–4** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Aaron Freeman — primary (person)
- Alex Zimmerman — primary (person)
- Garrett Bascom — coauthor (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2026-01-05** First reading: referred to Committee on Courts and Criminal Code `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2026-01-05** Authored by Representative Zimmerman
- **2026-01-05** Coauthored by Representative Bascom
- **2026-01-14** Committee report: do pass, adopted `committee-passage`
- **2026-01-20** Second reading: ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2026-01-28** Senate sponsor: Senator Freeman
- **2026-01-28** Third reading: passed; Roll Call 135: yeas 74, nays 18 `passage, reading-3, reading-3`
- **2026-01-29** Referred to the Senate `referral`
- **2026-02-02** First reading: referred to Committee on Corrections and Criminal Law `reading-1, referral-committee`
- **2026-02-12** Committee report: amend do pass, adopted `committee-passage`
- **2026-02-17** Second reading: ordered engrossed `reading-2`
- **2026-02-19** Third reading: passed; Roll Call 207: yeas 46, nays 0 `passage, reading-3, reading-3`
- **2026-02-20** Returned to the House with amendments `receipt`
- **2026-02-23** Motion to dissent filed `filing`
- **2026-02-23** House dissented from Senate amendments
- **2026-02-23** House conferees appointed: Zimmerman, Gore
- **2026-02-23** House advisors appointed: McNamara, Bascom, Pierce M
- **2026-02-23** Senate conferees appointed: Freeman, Taylor G
- **2026-02-23** Senate advisors appointed: Pol, Clark
- **2026-02-27** Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the House; Roll Call 424: yeas 96, nays 0
- **2026-02-27** Rules Suspended. Conference Committee Report 1: adopted by the Senate; Roll Call 327: yeas 43, nays 4
- **2026-02-27** CCR # 1 filed in the Senate `filing`
- **2026-02-27** CCR # 1 filed in the House `filing`
- **2026-03-12** Signed by the Governor `executive-signature`
- **2026-03-05** Signed by the President Pro Tempore `passage`
- **2026-03-12** Public Law 158 `became-law`
- **2026-03-03** Signed by the Speaker `passage`
- **2026-03-02** Signed by the President of the Senate `passage`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/6697c951-c2ab-437c-ac8e-cb1361e28826`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Indiana legislature records).