Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Indiana Public Question 1, Balanced Budget Amendment (2018)
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 9
- Early voting: Oct. 10 - Nov. 5
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: Yes
- Same-day registration: No
- Voter ID: Photo ID required
- Poll times: 6:00 am to 6:00 pm local time
| Indiana Public Question 1 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 6, 2018 | |
| Topic State and local government budgets, spending and finance | |
Status Approved | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
Indiana Public Question 1, the Balanced Budget Amendment, was on the ballot in Indiana as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 6, 2018. It was approved.
| A "yes" vote supported this amendment to require the state legislature to enact a balanced budget for each biennial budget period. |
| A "no" vote opposed this amendment to require the legislature to enact a balanced budget for each biennial budget period. |
Election results
|
Indiana Public Question 1 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
|
|
1,361,753 | 71.33% | ||
| No | 547,220 | 28.67% | ||
Overview
Amendment design
The amendment was designed to provide for a constitutional requirement that the state legislature enact a balanced budget for each biennial budget period. In other words, expenditures enacted by the legislature for a budget period would not be allowed to exceed the estimated revenue of the state for the same budget period. The measure also required public pension funds to be actuarially funded during each budget period. The measure required a two-thirds vote in each chamber of the legislature to suspend the requirements of a balanced budget and funding pensions for a budget period. The amendment was also designed to forbid court-ordered tax increases without the legislature's approval.[1][2]
How did this measure get on the ballot?
Indiana ballot measures come in only one form: legislatively referred constitutional amendments. These are constitutional amendments referred to the ballot by the state legislature. Proposed amendments must be approved in two successive sessions of the Indiana General Assembly before it can go to a vote of the people.
On January 14, 2015, the measure was introduced as Senate Joint Resolution 19 (SJR 19). On April 29, 2015, the Indiana Senate approved the amendment, with 43 senators voting yea and 6 voting nay. The Indiana House of Representatives passed the amendment on the same day by an 85 to 14 vote. Legislators could not vote on the amendment again in 2016, as the Indiana Constitution requires a general election to take place between the sessions in which an amendment is approved. Therefore, the legislature needed to approve the amendment again in 2017 to place the measure on the 2018 ballot.
On January 9, 2017, the amendment was reintroduced into the legislature as Senate Joint Resolution 7 (SJR 7). The Senate approved the amendment, 43 to 4 with three members excused, on January 24, 2017. The House of Representatives approved the amendment, 94 to 4 with two members excused, on April 4, 2017.
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title was as follows:[3]
| “ | Public Question #1
Shall Article 10, Section 5 of the Constitution of the State of Indiana be amended to require the General Assembly to adopt balanced budgets for state government that do not exceed estimated revenues unless a supermajority of two-thirds of the members of the House of Representatives and two-thirds of the members of the Senate vote to suspend the requirement?[4] |
” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article 10, Indiana Constitution
The measure amended Section 5 of Article 10 of the Indiana Constitution. The following underlined text would be added:[1][2] Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.
(b) The following definitions apply to this section only for purposes of the limits on the State budget under this section:
- (1) "Revenue" means all income received by the state general und and all other state funds, excluding the proceeds of bonds or other loans.
- (2) "Expense" means the ordinary operating costs of State government, including any debt service payments made during the biennial budget period.
(c) The total amount of expense appropriations enacted by the General Assembly for a biennial budget may not exceed the estimated revenue of the State in the biennial budget period.
(d) A State budget enacted by the General Assembly must appropriate money for the State's prefunded pension funds in the amount necessary to actuarially fund the accrued liability of all such pension funds during the budget period.
(e) If expenses exceed actual revenue received by the State when reconciled at the close of a biennial budget period, the subsequent biennial budget must subtract any shortfall from the projected revenue available for that subsequent biennial budget.
(f) The requirements under subsections (c) and (d) may be suspended if at least two-thirds of the members of the House of Representatives and at least two-thirds of the members of the Senate vote to suspend the requirement.
(g) A court that orders a remedy pursuant to any case or controversy arising under this section may not order any remedies other than a declaratory judgment or such other remedies that are specifically authorized by the General Assembly in a law implementing this section.[4]
Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2018
| Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.
In 2018, for the 167 statewide measures on the ballot, the average ballot title or question was written at a level appropriate for those with between 19 and 20 years of U.S. formal education (graduate school-level of education), according to the FKGL formula. Read Ballotpedia's entire 2018 ballot language readability report here. |
Support
Supporters
Officials
The following legislators sponsored the amendment in the state legislature:[1][2]
- Sen. Brandt Hershman (R-7)
- Sen. Luke Kenley (R-20)
- Sen. Travis Holdman (R-19)
- Sen. James Buck (R-21)
- Sen. Jeff Raatz (R-27)
- Sen. Dennis Kruse (R-14)
- Rep. Timothy Brown (R-41)
- Rep. Todd Huston (R-37)
- Former Sen. Patricia Miller (R-32)
Arguments
- Vice President Mike Pence (R), who was governor of Indiana in 2015, called for a balanced budget amendment to the state constitution, stating:[5]
| “ | A balanced budget requirement in the constitution of the state of Indiana will assure Hoosiers that today and tomorrow, Indiana will spend wisely, protect our state from an economic downturn, and unlike Washington, D.C., we won't bury our children and grandchildren under mountains of debt.[4] | ” |
- Sen. Brandt Hershman (R-7), an author of the amendment, said, "A balanced budget is vital to the long-term success of Indiana’s economy. Enshrining this amendment into the Indiana Constitution is the right step for Hoosiers and critical to maintaining our state’s financial strength."[6]
- Sen. Jim Buck (R-21) said, "It’s pretty simple, straightforward. Every budget session, the December before, there is a bipartisan group that gets together, and they do a look back as well as a look forward to what the state’s revenue stream is purported to be. Then we base our budget based on that projected revenue stream. All the different appropriations from, you name it, are geared to that. But during the budget year, which starts July 1st, any time during that year in that two-year cycle that the revenue stream does not match the projection, then the state has to pare back its spending to match the revenue. That’s why it’s called a balanced budget."[7]
Opposition
Opponents
- Indiana State Teachers Association[8]
Arguments
- Rep. Ed DeLaney (D-86) said, "We're pretending to solve a problem that doesn't exist in order to write an ad. This does not improve our constitution, does not improve our behavior, and is a waste of legislative time."[9]
- Peggy McBride of Crown Point said, "This November you will be asked to vote on Public Question 1. It seems like you are being asked to vote for a balanced budget amendment. Public Question 1 will allow the state to balance the budget by reducing pensions for police, firefighters and teachers. If this amendment passes, legislators will be able to reduce the pensions of all police, firefighters and teachers stating the constitution allows this. Vote 'No' on Public Question 1 if you do not want to reduce the pension for police, firefighters and teachers. Indiana will keep the balanced budget amendment now in our constitution."[10]
- The Indiana State Teachers Association said, "ISTA opposes the amendment and urges voters to vote no. Efforts behind the amendment are more posturing for political purposes. It is too simplistic to try to equate government accounting with household accounting, especially when essential services for Hoosiers are at stake. Besides, the Indiana General Assembly already takes ample precautions to secure responsible and balanced budgets."[8]
Media editorials
- See also: 2018 ballot measure media endorsements
Support
Ballotpedia did not identify any media editorials in support of Indiana Public Question 1. If you are aware of one, please send an email with a link to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Opposition
- The Journal Gazette wrote: "The General Assembly has acted responsibly in approving balanced budgets for 167 years, so Pence's amendment amounts to troublesome and unnecessary tinkering with our state constitution. Vote no."[11]
Campaign finance
- See also: Ballot measure campaign finance, 2018
Ballotpedia had not found committees registered to support or oppose Question 1.
| Total campaign contributions: | |
| Support: | $0 |
| Opposition: | $0 |
Background
Ballot measure process in Indiana
| Indiana Constitution |
|---|
|
| Preamble |
| Articles |
| 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15 • 16 |
Indiana ballot measures come in only one form: as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment - A constitutional amendment that appears on a state's ballot as a ballot measure because the state legislature in that state voted to put it before the voters.
The amendment procedures available under the Indiana Constitution are more restrictive than those of most other states. Only legislatively referred constitutional amendments can be used to amend the constitution, and this procedure is more restrictive in Indiana than in most states, since any proposed amendment must be approved in two successive sessions of the Indiana General Assembly before it can go to a vote of the people. Article 16 also does not say anything about how a constitutional convention could be held or called. The constitutions of more than 40 of the other states do lay out a procedure for calling a constitutional convention.
Indiana does not feature the power of citizen initiative for either initiated constitutional amendments or initiated state statutes.
Article 16 details how the legislatively referred constitutional amendment process works in Indiana:
- An amendment can be proposed in either chamber of the Indiana General Assembly.
- An amendment must be agreed to by a simple majority of the members elected to each of the two chambers.
- If that happens, the same amendment can be proposed in the next session of the legislature that convenes after a general election has taken place.
- If the amendment is approved by a simple majority vote of both chambers of the general assembly in that second legislative session, the amendment is then submitted to a statewide vote of the people at a general election.
- If a majority of those voting on the question approve it, the proposed amendment becomes part of the Indiana Constitution.
Referred amendments on the ballot
From 1996 through 2016, the state legislature referred 11 constitutional amendments to the ballot. Voters approved all 11 of the referred amendments. All of the amendments were referred to the ballot for general elections during even-numbered election years. The average number of amendments appearing on the general election ballot was one. The approval rate of referred amendments at the ballot box was 100 percent during the 20-year period from 1996 through 2016. The following table contains data for referred amendments during even-numbered election years from 1996 through 2016:
| Legislatively-referred constitutional amendments, 1996-2016 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total number | Approved | Percent approved | Defeated | Percent defeated | Annual average | Annual median | Annual minimum | Annual maximum | |
| 11 | 11 | 100.00% | 0 | 0.00% | 1.00 | 1.00 | 0 | 3 | |
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Indiana Constitution
In Indiana, a constitutional amendment must be passed by a simple majority of the members elected to each of the two chambers of the state legislature over two legislative sessions.
2015 legislative session
On January 14, 2015, the measure was introduced as Senate Joint Resolution 19 (SJR 19). On April 29, 2015, the Indiana Senate approved the amendment, with 43 senators voting yea and 6 voting nay. The Indiana House of Representatives passed the amendment on the same day by an 85 to 14 vote. Legislators could not vote on the amendment again in 2016, as the Indiana Constitution requires a general election to take place between the sessions in which an amendment is approved. Therefore, the legislature needed to approve the amendment again in 2017 to place the measure on the 2018 ballot.[1]
|
Vote in Senate on April 29, 2015
|
Vote in House on April 29, 2015
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2017 legislative session
On January 9, 2017, the amendment was reintroduced into the legislature as Senate Joint Resolution 7 (SJR 7). The Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee voted 10-to-3 to send SJR 7 to the floor of the Indiana Senate on January 17, 2017.[12] The Senate approved the amendment, 43 to 4 with three members excused, on January 24, 2017.[13] The House Judiciary Committee approved SJR 7 unanimously on March 27, 2017. The House Ways and Means Committee voted 17 to 2 to send the amendment to the floor of the Indiana House of Representatives on March 30, 2017. The House of Representatives approved the amendment, 94 to 4 with two members excused, on April 4, 2017.[2]
|
Vote in Senate on January 24, 2017
|
Vote in House on April 4, 2017
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Indiana General Assembly also needed to pass a statute, titled Senate Bill 222 (SB 222), containing a ballot question for the constitutional amendment. On February 27, 2017, SB 222 was passed in the Senate, with 43 senators voting in favor, six voting against, and two excused from voting. The House of Representatives approved the bill, 90 to 4 with six excused, on April 3, 2017.[3]
State profile
| Demographic data for Indiana | ||
|---|---|---|
| Indiana | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 6,612,768 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 35,826 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 84.2% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 9.2% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1.9% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 6.4% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 87.8% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 24.1% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $49,255 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 18.4% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Indiana. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Indiana
Indiana voted Republican in six out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, five are located in Indiana, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.[14]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Indiana had five Retained Pivot Counties, 2.76 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Indiana coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Indiana
- United States congressional delegations from Indiana
- Public policy in Indiana
- Endorsers in Indiana
- Indiana fact checks
- More...
See also
External links
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Indiana 2018 Balanced Budget Amendment. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Indiana General Assembly, "Senate Joint Resolution 19," accessed January 16, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Indiana General Assembly, "Senate Joint Resolution 7," accessed January 16, 2017
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Indiana General Assembly, "Senate Bill 222," accessed April 6, 2017
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Indianapolis Star, "Pence calls for balanced budget amendment in State of State address," January 13, 2015
- ↑ Indiana Senate Republicans, "Sen. Hershman’s Balanced Budget Amendment Passes Committee," February 17, 2015
- ↑ Kokomo Perspective, "How Hoosier voters may change Indiana’s constitution this election," accessed October 26, 2018
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 WLFI News, "INDIANA STATE TEACHERS ASSOCIATION OPPOSES BUDGET AMENDMENT," accessed October 26, 2018
- ↑ Indiana Business Journal, "State lawmakers seek to press forward with balanced budget amendment," January 16, 2017
- ↑ NWI Times, "Don't vote to reduce pensions," accessed October 26, 2018
- ↑ Journal Gazette, "No on Question #1," accessed October 25, 2018
- ↑ The Times of Northwest Indiana, "Indiana Senate committee advances balanced budget amendment," January 17, 2017
- ↑ The Times of Northwest Indiana, "Indiana Senate approves balanced budget amendment," January 24, 2017
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
 |
State of Indiana Indianapolis (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
