Legislative update: Bills dealing with child support and water infrastructure see passage Thursday evening

House Bills 402 and 404, sponsored by Rep. Massey, would raise the felony threshold for flagrant nonsupport and make changes to areas of the child support system.

House Bill 402 raises the felony threshold for flagrant non-support from $1,000 to $2,500. This comes after a committee substitute that lowered the number from $5,000 which Sen. Whitney Westerfield said was compromise language.

House Bill 404 updates the child support guidelines in statute for the first time in decades.

In committee, Massey said the issue was brought to him by the Child Support Commission and noted it has been over 15 years since the state has updated guidelines. He said two additions have been made to House Bill 404 to deal with shared parenting issues by adopting language being used in Indiana. Part of House Bill 404 won’t go into effect until 2022 to allow the state to work with family court judges and to ensure child care support is going where it needs to go.

House Bills 402 and 404 both passed the Senate 33-0 and now head back to the House for concurrence votes.

In the House, legislation seeking to improve water infrastructure passed 86-3 and now moves to the Senate.

House Bill 465, sponsored by Rep. Adam Koenig, seeks to empower local communities when it comes to water infrastructure investment, providing a clear roadmap for municipalities to pursue mutually beneficial partnerships with professional water companies, all while opening the door for new investments and jobs in local communities at a time when they are needed most.