Indiana National Guard Injury, Death and Survivor Benefits

Injury. IC 10-16-7-18: a Guard member on duty in a riot, disaster, invasion, aid to civil authority or whenever ordered by the governor or commanding general is "considered a state employee for purposes of receiving worker's compensation", and receiving it does not bar other Guard benefits. IC 10-16-7-19(a): a member wounded or disabled in state service within ten years before applying is placed on the roll of invalid pensioners and receives "the same pension or reward that a person under similar circumstances would receive from the United States", passing to the surviving spouse, dependent children or dependent parent on death. Death. IC 10-16-7-19(b): if a member dies in the active service of the state, reasonable funeral expenses "not exceeding twenty thousand dollars ($20,000)" are paid by the state. House Enrolled Act 1111 of 2025 raised the figure from $8,800. The same act made a Guard member on state active duty a "state employee" for the line-of-duty death benefit in IC 5-10-11, which pays $100,000 in a lump sum to the surviving spouse or, if none, to dependent children (IC 5-10-11-5). Education. The child or spouse of a member who suffered a service-connected death on state active duty qualifies for the tuition and fee exemption in IC 21-14-4, decided by the adjutant general. Life insurance. IC 10-16-7-17.5 makes the adjutant general sponsor of the state sponsored group life insurance offered through the National Guard Association of Indiana, with enrolment available from enlistment and premiums by military allotment. Out of date. The Army benefits library, re-read 2026-10-24, still gives the funeral benefit as $8,800.