A bill that passed both the Iowa House and Senate recently became a new law. 

State Senator for District 10 Jake Chapman had a hand in the recently passed legislation that eliminates the statute of limitations for sex crimes against children. Chapman explains the importance of removing the reporting restrictions such has victims of child sex crimes had 15 years to report the crime after they turned 18 years old. 

“It perhaps is one of the most, and is the most rewarding pieces of legislation I have personally worked on in my nine years in the State Capitol. A lot of legislation that we pass typically goes into effect on July 1st. We made an exception with this piece of legislation deeming that it is of high importance so we had an effective immediate clause.”

Chapman tells Raccoon Valley Radio the effective immediate clause allowed for the new law to take immediate effect instead of waiting until the typical start date for new laws, which is July 1st. 

“That arbitrary deadline needed to be lifted, and that’s what we did. Again, these perpetrators that are out there who think that they’re going to be able to fly by simply because they passed a deadline. Well that deadline no longer exists in the State of Iowa.”

The legislation was signed into law by Governor Kim Reynolds on May 13th.