Vanderburgh County Lawmakers Highlight New Indiana Laws Now In Effect

Adam Aasen-Press Secretary

Indiana House Republicans

STATEHOUSE (July 12, 2022) – Vanderburgh County lawmakers said Hoosiers should be aware of several new and notable state laws, which are now in effect.

“Whether it’s protecting the sanctity of life or giving parents a voice in their children’s education, we continued to fight hard for Hoosier families,” said State Rep. Matt Hostettler (R-Patoka). “These new laws reflect our desire to listen to the people and represent their interests at the Statehouse.”

Hoosiers should be aware of several new laws, which were passed during the 2022 legislative session and took effect on July 1:

Empowering Hoosier Parents
When it comes to education, input and ideas from parents, students, teachers and community members are important. Now, school boards will have to allow time for public comments at all open meetings, ensuring parents’ voices are heard.

“Our education system works best when it engages everyone from the community,” said State Rep. Tim O’Brien (R-Evansville), author of the law. “Over the last year we saw some school boards in other areas of the state shutdown public discussion. That’s unacceptable. Parents deserve a seat at the table when it comes to decisions being made about their child’s education. This new law is meant to empower parents and ensure they have opportunities to speak up.”

Increasing Election Security
Indiana will double its number of election audits after each general election. All Indiana electronic voting machines will be required to be equipped with a voter-verifiable paper audit trail by the 2024 election. Every voter will be able to verify their ballot on a printout before casting their vote. This step will offer assurances that electronically recorded votes are accurate. O’Brien co-authored this law.

Improving Youth Outcomes

To improve outcomes for troubled youth, a new juvenile justice oversight body, created by this new law, will begin crafting a plan for nonviolent juvenile offenders to receive counseling for mental health and behavioral issues rather than being incarcerated or placed in detention. The oversight body will also develop ways for youth offenders to be screened and connected to resources to reduce their likelihood of reoffending. The body will also make funding recommendations to be considered in the next legislative session.

“This ongoing work to create better outcomes for Hoosier youth will have a tremendous impact on our communities,” said State Rep. Wendy McNamara (R-Evansville), author of the law. “Nonviolent youth who commit minor offenses should no longer be locked up. We can instead connect them to programs to get them on the right track.”

Protecting Crime Victims

Young victims of traumatic and certain violent crimes will be able to submit a video statement for court procedures to protect them from further harm. Penalties against human traffickers will be enhanced and public safety efforts will be strengthened to prevent human trafficking crimes. McNamara sponsored this law.

Supporting Pregnant Women

Indiana will join 18 other states that provide protection to women and their unborn babies from coerced abortions. A person who coerces a pregnant woman to terminate their pregnancy could be charged with a felony, and abortion clinics will be held accountable if they fail to report coercion to law enforcement.

Visit iga.in.gov for more information on these and other new laws.

FOOTNOTE: State Rep. Matt Hostettler (R-Patoka) represents House District 64, which includes Gibson County and portions of Knox, Pike, Vanderburgh, and Posey counties.  State Rep. Wendy McNamara (R-Evansville) represents House District 76,  which includes portions of Posey and Vanderburgh counties. State Rep. Tim O’Brien (R-Evansville) represents House District 78, which includes portions of Vanderburgh and Warrick counties.

Meet Tony Ricketts, General Manager Of D-Patrick Auto Sales

By Michael L. Smith, Jr.

JULY, 18, 2022

His management and sales skills have served him well over the years. He has dabbled in every aspect of the D-Patrick.  He was a salesperson, a finance and insurance manager, then was promoted to sales manager.”

Tony has received leadership training in Cincinnati, OH with an interesting group of individuals led by Richard Olivier, son of the famous actor Lawrence Olivier. The entire process of this training session was based around Shakespeare’s play Henry V. The point of me bringing up this most interesting training session was to show that I know that my job as a leader is to communicate to my team members what is expected of them, and to show them, to guide them how to get there. It’s not about being a boss and yelling at people or making unreasonable demands just because I can, it’s about showing people what your expectations are and how they can meet those expectations. We’ve all got a job to do, we’re all on the same team and we all have the same goal.”

I asked Tony to tell me about the history of D-Patrick. He told me that one of the things he really loved about D-Patrick was that it is still a local family-owned business. Tony also gave me a brief history lesson about D-Patrick. “The O’Daniel family started the company in the 1930s, during the height of the Great Depression. Joe O’Daniel became the owner of an Oldsmobile dealership, and from there it has grown generation by generation. Slowly they expanded into having multiple car lines and became one of the largest sellers of used cars in this market. D. Patrick O’Daniel took over after Joe and expanded the business even further, and now Mike O’Daniel and his brother-in-law Ray Farabaugh, who are partners, are taking it to the next level.” Tony informed me that D-Patrick even has a dealership in the Indianapolis market now, where they have recently opened up in Lebanon, IN.

Tony has worked at D-Patrick for over 35 years, He’s been married to his beautiful wife Heather for 31 years, and I’ve lived in the same house for nearly 30 years. They have two grown sons in their thirties. His oldest son is named Alec and he’s a funeral director up in Boonville, married to a wonderful woman named Ariel and I am very proud of both of them. My youngest son’s name is Adrian, he works in the building trades here in Evansville, and I’m very proud of him as well. I also have a dog named Skipper who I love. I’ve been blessed with a happy life and a great job.”

JD Power: The Health Plan Members Are Most Satisfied With In Each US Region

Though healthcare utilization is expected to begin normalizing after pandemic volatility, customer expectations have evolved, and health plans have a lot of work to do to increase their satisfaction, according to J.D. Power’s 2022 Commercial Member Health Plan study.