Lifeline Law passes in Senate, readies for Ind. House

With a resounding 50-0 vote in the Indiana State Senate, the Indiana Lifeline bill is leaving the Senate floor and heading to the House.

The Senate unanimously approved the bill, which first began last spring as a campaign platform of IU’s student government, the IU Student Association.

The bill aims to encourage students to call for emergency assistance in cases of alcohol overconsumption by granting them immunity. Protection would be extended in cases of public intoxication, underage possession of alcohol, and consumption or transportation of alcoholic beverages.

The bill won’t shield those who drive under the influence of alcohol or those who don’t fully comply with emergency personnel. It also doesn’t apply to any other type of drug possession.

IUSA President Justin Kingsolver was not surprised the bill passed, but he didn’t expect it to be as well-received as it was, he said.  

“To see this external validation, that our hearts were in the right place and that we had a good public policy idea, that these senators that were elected by the people approved our ideas that were brainstormed in a room by a bunch of people a year ago, that was really validating and the right thing to do,” Kingsolver said.

IUSA collaborated with Purdue University in bringing the bill to the Indiana General Assembly. They also worked heavily with Hoosier Youth Advocacy.

IUSA’s current leaders contacted Hoosier Youth Advocacy, a nonpartisan organization founded in 2010 by college students, soon after they took office in spring 2011.

HYA provided IUSA with guidance through the process, research to give the IU coalition an edge and assistance in reaching out to legislators and gathering support from other universities.

And while Tuesday’s announcement marks a victory for the bill, the effort still has a number of hurdles to clear.   

Kingsolver believes the bill will make it through the House and to the governor’s desk by the General Assembly’s adjournment on March 14, though that process may prove more time consuming than the Senate process, he said.

Junior Bennett Fuson, HYA director of communications, said that now that the bill is reaching the House, where debates on right-to-work legislation is dominating discussion, the lifeline coalition may need to fight for attention of lawmakers.

“Expect to see this organization and the lifeline coalition start to make an impact across the state,” he said. “The success we’ve had this week in the Senate will hopefully be a great selling point. If we need to make a bigger impact, we plan to make our voice heard.”