Merit Institute Merit

The Indiana Merit-Based Credentialing Act (IN-ACSA)

Indiana state companion to ACSA. Extends the Indiana Department of Workforce Development certification framework, Indiana occupational-licensure reform under Ind. Code Title 25, and the Ind. Code Ch. 6-3.1 adjusted-gross-income-tax credit regime.

THE INDIANA MERIT-BASED CREDENTIALING ACT (IN-ACSA)

Vehicle: State passage. Indiana General Assembly, regular session. Primary referral to House Employment, Labor and Pensions / Ways and Means and Senate Pensions and Labor / Tax and Fiscal Policy; education provisions to House / Senate Education.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE

This Act may be cited as the “Indiana Merit-Based Credentialing Act (IN-ACSA).”

SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT

The General Assembly finds that Indiana operates a developed workforce-credential infrastructure including the Indiana Department of Workforce Development (“DWD”) under Ind. Code Title 22 Art. 4.1; professional licensing under Ind. Code Title 25 with administrative coordination through the Professional Licensing Agency; the Indiana Commission for Higher Education under Ind. Code Title 21 Art. 18; the Workforce Ready Grant and the Next Level Jobs employer-training grant; the Indiana adjusted-gross-income tax credit framework under Ind. Code Ch. 6-3.1; and the Indiana SOS business-formation platform InBiz. This Act extends those authorities.

TITLE I — DEFINITIONS & COORDINATION WITH INDIANA LAW

Sec. 101. Definitions

  1. (a) “Indiana Recognized Merit Credential” or “INRMC” means a competency-based credential designated by the Commissioner of Higher Education under Sec. 201.
  2. (b) “Federal FRAC” means a Federally Recognized Alternative Credential under Section 202 of the federal ACSA.
  3. (c) “DWD industry-aligned credential” means a credential recognized by DWD for workforce-training purposes under Ind. Code Title 22.
  4. (d) “Covered State licensing authority” means an agency issuing an occupational license under Ind. Code Title 25 or comparable chapter receiving Federal workforce funds directly or indirectly.

Sec. 102. Coordination with Existing Indiana Law

  1. (a) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to duplicate or conflict with:
  • Ind. Code Title 25 (professional licensure; Professional Licensing Agency).
  • Ind. Code Title 21 Art. 18 (Indiana Commission for Higher Education).
  • Ind. Code Title 22 Art. 4.1 (Department of Workforce Development).
  • Ind. Code Ch. 6-3.1 (tax credits) and Ch. 6-3.1-4 (R&D credit).
  • Ind. Code Title 4 Art. 15 (state employment; State Personnel Department).

TITLE II — INDIANA RECOGNIZED MERIT CREDENTIALS

Sec. 201. Designation Authority

  1. (a) The Commissioner of Higher Education, in coordination with DWD, shall maintain an Indiana Recognized Merit Credentials registry (“INRMC Registry”) in machine-readable form, crosswalked to the Federal FRAC list, updated at least annually.
  2. (b) A credential is included if it is a DWD industry-aligned credential, a Federal FRAC, or satisfies standards adopted by CHE in coordination with DWD.

Sec. 202. Degree-Optional State Employment

  1. (a) Ind. Code Title 4 Art. 15 (State Personnel Department) shall be applied so that an INRMC-holder satisfies any position qualification stated in terms of a college degree, unless the degree is expressly required by Indiana statute.
  2. (b) The State Personnel Department shall publish annual reporting enumerating hires satisfying Sec. 202(a).

TITLE III — TAX INCENTIVE FOR SKILLS-BASED HIRING

Sec. 301. Indiana Skills-Based Hiring Tax Credit

  1. (a) A new credit is added to Ind. Code Ch. 6-3.1 providing an offset against the adjusted-gross-income tax under Ind. Code Ch. 6-3 equal to a percentage of qualified first-year wages paid to an Indiana-domiciled employee whose qualifying pathway is an INRMC or a Federal FRAC.
  2. (b) The credit shall be coordinated with the federal IRC Sec. 45AA credit, subject to an annual program cap set in the biennial budget.
  3. (c) The Department of Revenue shall adopt rules under Ind. Code Ch. 4-22-2.

TITLE IV — OCCUPATIONAL LICENSURE PORTABILITY

Sec. 401. Licensure by Demonstrated Competency

  1. (a) A covered State licensing authority shall provide a demonstrated-competency pathway for any occupation for which no specific degree is required by Indiana statute.
  2. (b) The pathway shall accept an INRMC, a Federal FRAC, or a combination of examination and supervised experience satisfying competency standards adopted by the authority.

Sec. 402. Interstate Recognition for Federal-Fund Recipients

  1. (a) A covered State licensing authority receiving Federal workforce funds under 29 U.S.C. Sec. 3161 et seq. shall recognize an out-of-state holder of an INRMC or Federal FRAC as meeting the competency requirement for licensure, consistent with Section 401 of the federal ACSA.
  2. (b) The Professional Licensing Agency shall publish annual compliance reporting.

TITLE V — IMPLEMENTATION & GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Severability

If any provision of this Act is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect the remainder.

Sec. 502. Effective Date

This Act shall take effect July 1 of the year following enactment, except that Sec. 301 shall apply to tax years beginning on or after January 1 of that year.

Canonical federal version: ACSA. Other Indiana bills: IN-MEWRA, IN-GT&P, IN-AI-Workforce.