Mental health is an issue affecting many individuals, families and communities. According to the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health, approximately 22% of Hoosiers experience mental illness each year, and half with serious mental illness go untreated. That's why Indiana's new state budget allocates an additional $100 million for mental health resources. This new funding is being used to lay the groundwork to expand the number of certified community behavioral health clinics throughout Indiana and increase crisis response services, which is a Senate Republican priority.

Hoosiers should also be aware of the following resources.

• The National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, available by dialing 9-8-8, allows a caller to speak with a trained crisis specialist.
  
  
• BeWellIndiana is a free confidential resource to call if an individual is feeling stressed, anxious, overwhelmed or alone. Simply dial 2-1-1 to be connected to a crisis counselor.

Indiana's new state budget increases funding for K-12 education by $2.9 billion over the next two years. Here are some of the key changes included within that $2.9 billion increase.

• Public schools can no longer charge families for textbooks and other curricular materials, saving Hoosier parents hundreds of dollars per year.
  
  
• Under the school funding formula, schools are seeing increased per-child funding for every student they teach, with targeted increases for special-education students and high schoolers enrolled in high-wage, high-demand vocational courses.
  
  
• Under HEA 1591 from the 2023 session, school districts must spend at least 62% of their state tuition support funding on teacher pay and benefits. Teacher salaries will be locally bargained under the new budget until later this fall, and we should see school districts raising pay and/or increasing benefits for their teachers.
  
  
• The state provided an extra $700 million to pay down the unfunded liability for our largest teachers' retirement pension fund. This move is a win-win for retired teachers and all taxpayers. By putting an extra $700 million toward this fund, we are moving up the date for when the pension will be fully funded, showing that Indiana is keeping its financial promises to teachers and ensuring Hoosier taxpayers won't be on the hook for this pension liability years into the future.
  
  
• The budget provides an $11 million increase for Secured School Safety Grants, which help school districts cover a wide array of safety-related costs.

We all know access to reliable high-speed internet service is a necessity in today's economy. Over the past several years, Indiana has made great strides in expanding internet access, especially in rural communities. Since its inception in 2019, the Next Level Connections Broadband Grant Program has awarded more than $248 million to bring broadband to over 68,000 homes and businesses in unserved areas of Indiana.