United Way of Central Indiana announces legislative agenda focused on affordability
United Way of Central Indiana on Tuesday announced its public policy agenda for the 2026 legislative session.
United Way's priorities include improving the affordability of – and access to – both child care and housing, reducing medical debt and supporting policies that help working families thrive.
As the costs of housing, child care, health care and food continue to rise, United Way recognizes a need for public policy to ease these pressures so that Hoosiers can build stability.
“Hoosiers have shown remarkable patience and resilience in the face of economic uncertainty and household economic challenges,” said Sam Snideman, United Way’s vice president of government and sector relations. “The upcoming legislative session offers our General Assembly an opportunity to bring a renewed focus on an issue that holds Hoosiers back: the ability to meet the basic needs for themselves and their families. Our state's economic health is tied to that of our residents, and we need bold policy solutions to secure economic opportunity for all.”
United Way’s 2026 public policy agenda will focus on:
Early care and learning: Indiana’s workforce depends on child care – but there aren't enough child care seats, and families struggle to afford care. Nearly 40% of children who need care can’t get it. Hoosier parents spend on average 11% of their income on child care, higher than the 7% that is considered affordable by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. And recent cuts have further strained the state’s child care system.
In partnership with the Early Education Works Coalition, United Way will advocate to:
Improve the affordability of, and access to, early care and learning – and the need for fiscal support for the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) and On My Way Pre-K programs in the next budget session.
Support models that bring together employers, governments and individuals to share the cost of care, such as the “tri-share” model in Northeast Indiana.
Support child care workers and address sustainability challenges facing the sector. Because of notably low wages, more than half of Indiana child care workers rely on public income supports – more than double the rate of workers across all occupations.
Increase data transparency of programs including the Child Care and Development Fund and On My Way Pre-K.
United Way will collaborate with Indiana Afterschool Network and other partners to ensure out-of-school care is included in efforts to improve the state’s child care system.
Safe and affordability housing: Hoosiers need a safe, reliable place to live in order to provide for their families. But there’s a lack of affordable housing in Indiana, and wages haven’t kept up with increasing housing costs. This leads to high eviction rates and barriers to homeownership. United Way is focusing state and local advocacy efforts on:
Increasing the supply of quality affordable housing.
Expanding pathways to homeownership, including down payment and homeowner education support.
Ending housing discrimination and promoting fair housing for all.
Opposing criminal penalties for homelessness.
Preventing displacement as neighborhoods grow.
Medical debt: Indiana leads the Midwest in its proportion of residents with medical debt, with more than 18% of Hoosiers affected. United Way’s advocacy efforts will focus on:
Strengthening hospital charity care policies by evaluating income requirements.
Ensuring medical debt can’t damage patients’ credit scores and that wages can’t be garnished to pay for debt.
Requiring debt collectors to inform patients if their debt has passed statutory repayment terms.
Increasing price transparency and controlling the cost of health care.
Family supportive policy: United Way supports efforts to help working families thrive, including:
Advocating for paid family and medical leave.
Supporting child tax credits so families can better cover their basic needs.
Throughout the legislative session, United Way will also support policies that improve access to healthy food, including protecting access to federal food benefit programs, such as SNAP.
United Way works to distance Central Indiana households from poverty, a population that continues to grow. In United Way’s seven-county service area, more than 241,000 households – over one in three households – could not afford a basic household budget in 2023. That’s an increase of 10% since 2018.
To develop its public policy agenda, United Way consulted with its network of more than 90 nonprofit partners across Boone, Hamilton, Hancock, Hendricks, Marion, Morgan and Putnam counties.
Hoosiers can join United Way’s advocacy efforts by visiting uwci.org/advocate.