Porter comments on revenue, economic and Medicaid forecasts

Today, Dec. 18, the State Budget Committee (SBC) discussed the revenue, economic and Medicaid forecasts before the remainder of the 2026 legislative session. State Rep. Gregory W. Porter (D-Indianapolis) released the following statement about the revenue and economic forecasts:  

“Indiana’s doing much better than expected. We’re up by almost $1.8 billion for the biennium. That warrants reopening the state budget. The budget deficit we expected isn’t happening.

“The majority put Indiana’s limited funds towards their voucher expansion. Then they cut social services, including Health First Indiana, Housing First and individual financial aid. Right now, Hoosiers need those safety nets.  

“Roughly 75% of people are using credit cards to buy Christmas presents. That’s an economic forecast in itself. Hoosiers don’t have any breathing room. Let’s use people’s hard-earned tax dollars for their benefit, instead of hoarding it in the surplus.”

The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) expect to save $465 million from its 2025 Medicaid appropriation. Porter released the following statement about the Medicaid forecast: 

“I have one question for the Braun administration: Is it worth it? You cut reimbursement rates for the Child Care Development Fund (CCDF). Now, multiple providers have closed, and 30,000 kids are on the waitlist. There are 9,188 seniors on the Pathways waitlist, a 16% increase from June. You’ll save even more money from today’s changes to ABA therapy at the expense of children in need. 

“The savings prove we can shrink the waitlists. Instead, you're padding stats. You’ve let Indiana’s most vulnerable go without care to cut costs. These were needless, cruel cuts that put fiscal conservatism above the common good. I encourage Gov. Braun to reverse his cuts and shrink the waitlists.”