House Republicans to Text Bill Updates

There’s a new way for the public to stay up-to-date on legislation, as the Indiana House Republicans led by House Speaker Brian Bosma are working to send out text message updates on certain bills as they proceed through the legislative process. Bosma said this is a great way to communicate to the public while providing transparency, and he hopes it will get more people involved with the happenings at the Statehouse.

This decision is an extension of several transparency initiatives Bosma launched in previous years; in 2005, he began live streaming House floor proceedings, and in 2011, he made every House committee meeting available online. In January, he hosted the first ever “tweet seats,” making Indiana the only state to host such an event.

The House Republicans will utilize SMS messages to track and inform the public of the progression of House bills, with emphasis on the “Own Your Own American Dream” agenda and other House bills of high public interest.

Currently, the House bills included in the service are:

• HB 1001: Budget
• HB 1002: Indiana Career Council
• HB 1003: School Scholarships
• HB 1004: Early Education Scholarship Pilot Program
• HB 1005: Remediation
• HB 1006: Criminal Code
• HB 1007: Online Sales Tax Collection
• HB 1008: Various Education Matters
• HB 1040: Child in Need of Services Petitions
• HB 1041: Petitions to Modify Custody and Visitation
• HB 1123: Child Fatality Reviews and Commission on Children
• HB 1334: Various Education Matters
• HB 1387: Veterans’ Service Officers
• HB 1483: Drug Testing
• HB 1524: Synthetic Drugs

The service is free; however, standard text messaging rates may apply through individual carriers

Anyone interested can sign-up for the text messaging service by visiting http://inhousegop.us