April 7, 2026 · Statewide
Indiana Manufacturers Association Policy 2026: Three Moves That Affect Your Operation
The IMA launched a tort reform nonprofit, partnered with Indiana Tech on workforce training, and backed new tax provisions. Here's what each move means for your opera
The Indiana Manufacturers Association is pulling three levers in 2026 that directly touch your legal costs, your talent pipeline, and your after-tax investment dollars, and if you're not tracking all three, the decisions that follow will catch you off guard when it's too late to adjust.
01Statewide
Indiana Manufacturers Association Backs Civil and Tort Law Reform
On January 5th, 2026, the IMA and other Indiana business groups formed a new nonprofit with a single mandate: advocate for comprehensive civil and tort law reforms across the state. When business groups create a separate entity just to work on one set of laws, that usually signals multiple legislative sessions of sustained effort, not a one-time press release.
02Statewide
IMA and Indiana Tech Expand Workforce Training for Manufacturers
Back on October 17th, 2025, the IMA announced a collaboration with Indiana Tech to deliver structured courses, certifications, and manufacturing-focused training programs directly to employees at member companies. The framing matters here: these aren't generic corporate development courses.
03Statewide
IMA Backs One Big Beautiful Bill Act Tax Provisions
On July 11th, 2025, the IMA issued a statement supporting the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and highlighted its pro-growth tax provisions as important for Indiana manufacturers. Their position: these changes make Indiana a more attractive place to invest and expand.
Questions for Your Morning Huddle
Q: What legal risks and insurance costs tied to civil and tort exposure are hitting us hardest today? A: Pull your legal and insurance spend with your finance or legal team and tag what's specifically tied to civil and tort exposure. If IMA-backed reforms move through the 2026-2027 legislative sessions, you need a baseline now to recognize actual savings later, otherwise the benefit is invisible.
Q: Which IMA-Indiana Tech training programs match our current workforce gaps, and what does our enrollment process need to look like? A: Identify your top two or three real gaps, maintenance, automation, quality, frontline leadership, then watch for program announcements that match. Build a simple internal enrollment process before demand from your employees exceeds what your HR team can handle reactively.
Q: Given the One Big Beautiful Bill Act's tax provisions, do we need to adjust the timing or scale of any planned capital expenditures? A: Review your current project list with your CFO and model the tax impact of pulling investments forward or pushing them back. If the provisions change the net cost of a major equipment purchase or facility upgrade, the best time to find that out is before the budget is already committed.
Watch this TEG Daily on YouTube: TEG Daily, IMA Tort Reform, Workforce Training, and Tax Policy for Indiana Manufacturers
Manufacturers Energy Grant Program
Free for Indiana manufacturers
Manufacturers from qualifying Indiana counties receive free, ongoing energy auditing and cost control that reduces their energy bills and keeps them low, month after month. Every line item checked and validated, every opportunity found comes with a step-by-step guide to capture it.
EDCs: sponsor this program and it carries your organization's name For economic developers →