INDIANAPOLIS— The Indiana General Assembly has begun to advance a number of proposals during the 2013 legislative session. State Senator Frank Mrvan (D-Hammond) has authored a number of bills focusing on government transparency and child abuse.

Increasing government transparency and accountability
Senate Bill (SB) 316 requires the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) to disclose all records related to taxpayer funded economic development incentives under the Open Records Law. The bill would require the IEDC's annual Job Creation Incentives and Compliance Report to be published on the Indiana Transparency Portal Internet web site. The bill would also require the IEDC and the Department of Revenue (DOR) to compile information on all job creation incentives granted and to include this information in their report.

Additionally, SB 316 would require incentive recipients to prepare an annual progress report on the number of jobs created or retained, employee pay and other information concerning the use of the job creation incentives. This bill would require the IEDC to reclaim incentives from a recipient who fails to meet any of the conditions specified in the incentive agreement.

Giving a voice to victims of child abuse

SB 142 would increase the amount of time that victims of child abuse have to file civil action or criminal prosecution for certain sexual offenses. The proposal would extend the amount of time a victim has to file a civil suit to seven years after the incident, and would also extend from five to ten years the ability of a victim to file criminal prosecution. In both instances, the victim would also be allowed to file a civil or criminal case four years after the victim ceases to be a dependent of the person alleged to have initiated the sexual abuse.

Sen. Mrvan represents Indiana Senate District 1 which includes portions of Lake County. District 1 communities include Hammond, Munster, Highland, Dyer, Schererville and Griffith as well as two precincts in Crown Point. For more information on Sen. Mrvan his legislative agenda or other State Senate business call 1-800-382-9467 or visit www.IN.gov/S1.

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NOTE: A photo of Sen. Frank Mrvan can be downloaded at:

http://www.in.gov/legislative/senate_democrats/images/headshots/Mrvan.jpg