INDIANAPOLIS (AP): Some state senators have proposed replacing Indiana's current ISTEP standardized school tests with others that would be less expensive.

A bill sponsored by three Republican senators calls for the State Board of Education to revise Indiana's K-12 academic standards and select a nationally recognized set of exams for testing students by July 2016.

Bill sponsor Sen. Luke Kenley believes the state would be better off using such an “off the shelf'' set of tests. Kenley says he doesn't believe the state's school standards would need to be completely rewritten to work with new tests.

Kenley is the Senate Appropriations Committee chairman and has questioned the estimated $20 million increase sought by state education officials to cover the cost of standardized testing.