Can Reddit help me understand the history of [Indiana Senate Bill 101 aka Religious Freedom Restoration](https://iga.in.gov/legislative/2015/bills/senate/101#)?

I used to work for a State Senator, but it wasn't in Indiana. But I can give you some insight. Also, I'm wordy as fuck, so sorry if this is too long.

The process of creating a bill is complicated, and involves a lot of people. It's origins can come from many different places, with many influences; bills can come from one story that a Legislator heard about on the news, or from a personal belief they hold, or a general concern of their constituents. From my experience (purely on the Democratic side of the aisle), it was very rare for a lobbying organization to be the primary reason for a bill to be created. They will often be included in the process, but it's not like lobbyists strong arm legislators into introducing specific legislation. Legislators are savvy people (almost always), and with the help of their party caucus are very aware of what's going on. I don't pretend to know anything about Indiana's domestic politics, but I don't doubt that there was a lot at play in this bill being brought forth.

1)A Legislator and interest groups will meet and formulate their ideas in what's commonly called a stakeholder meeting. These meetings will include a bill drafter, the person who literally writes the language of the bill. They're typically a neutral party. Bill drafters are state employed attorneys that work for both parties, trained to write in legal language and be write the bill so it effectively fits into current statute.

2) The bill is drafted then reviewed and edited by the legislator and interested parties, then is introduced in the legislature for passage. Once introduced, the sponsor/author cannot be changed, but sponsors can be added to the bill. (you actually may be able to withdraw sponsorship depending on state, but I've never heard of it).

So essentially in this context "co-author" essentially just means that this legislator was involved in the inception and support of this bill. They're the one whose name is attached to it, and is held responsible for the outcome of said legislation. They were very likely directly involved in the thought behind the bill and were involved, but it's pretty unlikely that they literally sat down and wrote the text. So when you see "Legislator XYZ was added as a co-author" it just means they're coming out in strong support of the bill after introduction. This is a useful tool to provide talking points on campaigns and debates. "I sponsored bill XYZ", etc.

Would a bill like this have "outside" authors (lobbyists, maybe)?

Of course. But remember how I defined "author" in this context. In my state they don't use the term "author", just sponsor and co-sponsor and frankly I think it's misleading they say that. Many issues, especially ones that make and substantive changes are brought to legislators by constituents and lobbying organizations. It's really important to remember here that not all lobbyists are evil, manipulative and corrupt. Every issue has a lobby, and most of the lobbyists I've met are great people, they just believe in an issue and want to push it.

If so, is this recorded in the public record somewhere?

No. It's not like they're top secret meetings or anything, but there's nobody there keeping a record of it, unless it's one of the organizations or legislators staffers. They're still building the framework of the bill at this stage, so nothing is concrete. But still, it's not hard at all to figure out what lobbying organizations and interest groups are behind what legislation. They often come right out and say it.

Are the changes that are now being considered similar to the amendments that were previously rejected?

I don't know what you mean, the bill has been passed and signed into law. It's not going to be changed unless they introduce new legislation alter/repeal it. If you sort through the website, you're able to read the literal text of the bill and the amendments (both failed and successful ones) and see what was trying to be changed.

/r/Ask_Politics Thread