2026 Policy Agenda

We all benefit when Hoosiers have the foundations necessary for a stable life, can secure good jobs, and, when needed, can access well-functioning support programs. Ending financial drains and crafting a fair tax code ensure that everyone in our state has the resources they need to thrive. Our team at the Institute regularly engages with Hoosiers from all walks of life, listening to their stories and understanding what they need. This policy agenda reflects our legislative and administrative advocacy goals for 2026:

Foundations

• Promote stability in housing by increasing the supply and affordability of housing, enhancing property owners’ and renters’ abilities to collaboratively address habitability concerns, and encouraging the use of supportive services - not punitive approaches - to meet housing needs.
• Ensure adequate access to nutritious food by making sure SNAP benefits, including summer SUN Bucks to feed children in need, are available and easily accessible.
• Create more opportunities for children to attend quality childcare while their parents or guardians work or advance their education, while ensuring that childcare providers and workers can meet their own basic needs.  
• Ensure that utilities are affordable for all Hoosiers by making sure Indiana’s utility regulatory framework is both responsive to ratepayers and designed to support the long-term reliability of our energy grid.
• Protect health care access through quality, affordable and accessible health insurance coverage and a robust Medicaid program.  

Good Jobs

• Support widespread access to family-sustaining jobs with benefits like quality health insurance, retirement savings accounts, and paid family and medical leave insurance to promote health and long-term financial security.
• Connect Hoosiers to upskilling opportunities and supportive services when job separation occurs.
• Proactively prepare for artificial intelligence (AI) to affect the jobs landscape and thoughtfully create smooth transitions for Hoosiers affected by AI in the workplace.

Support Programs

• Increase unemployment benefits to ensure that Hoosier households affected by job loss can maintain their financial stability and avoid adverse events, such as evictions and food insecurity.
• Expand eligibility and increase benefits for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) cash assistance while also directing TANF spending to families with the highest need, including parents of infants and toddlers who may not be able to access childcare support.
• Eliminate duplicative, costly, or overly burdensome paperwork requirements in support programs like Medicaid, SNAP, and TANF without compromising privacy, transparency, and accuracy, especially when technological improvements are considered or integrated into government systems.
• Mitigate benefits cliffs so that Hoosiers can move up the income ladder without jeopardizing their financial position.

Financial Drains

• Enhance hospital financial assistance requirements and make payment plans more accessible so that Hoosiers are not forced to decide between meeting basic needs and paying medical bills.
• Ensure that debt does not drive Hoosiers into poverty through inadequate wage garnishment and bank account protections.
• Reform predatory lending practices and maintain strong consumer lending laws to prevent Hoosiers from entering and remaining stuck in cycles of high-cost debt.

Fair Tax Code

• Make thoughtful choices about how to update Indiana’s tax code in response to federal tax law changes to maintain revenue and promote the financial security of Hoosiers with low- and moderate-incomes.
• Provide transparency and accountability around Indiana's use of taxpayer dollars by making complex budget discussions and policy choices digestible to everyday Hoosiers.
• Explore options to adequately fund essential services that promote nutrition access, housing, and the opportunity to live up to one’s full potential.