INDIANA – Great news for students and families in Indiana – the 2023 Indiana General Assembly has passed House Bill 1216, the bill requires each public school to provide curricular materials and books at no cost to each student enrolled in the public school.
That means students enrolled at Bedford North Lawrence and Mitchell Community Schools and other surrounding schools will not be charged for curricular materials, including textbooks, iPads, and Chromebooks.
The change, championed by Gov. Eric Holcomb, is meant to lighten the load on Hoosier families, who reported paying hundreds of dollars every year for their students’ course materials. Indiana had been among the last handful of states that still allowed schools to charge these fees.
Education advocates agree the change benefits families, but say the state must support schools with the financial burden, And, with a new school year rapidly approaching, they say more guidance is needed on how much schools will receive to make purchasing decisions and also what counts as curricular materials under the new law, which broadly includes books, computer software, digital content, and hardware that will be consumed by a student over the course of a year.
Families will also no longer need to complete a Free/Reduced Application during registration this year.
The state already covers the cost of textbooks for students who qualify for free and reduced-price meals at a cost of around $39 million per year.
However, it’s important to note that families will still be responsible for any outstanding fees from previous years.
To read more about the bill click here.
