{"id":2198077,"date":"2024-03-13T03:42:02","date_gmt":"2024-03-13T07:42:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/indiana-agency-violates-transparency-law-while-making-deals-with-communist-china\/"},"modified":"2024-03-13T03:47:58","modified_gmt":"2024-03-13T07:47:58","slug":"indiana-agency-violates-transparency-law-while-making-deals-with-communist-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/indiana-agency-violates-transparency-law-while-making-deals-with-communist-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Indiana Agency Breaches Transparency Law in Deals with Communist China"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Findiana-agency-violates-transparency-law-while-making-deals-with-communist-china%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2198077&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div class=\"article-content\">\n<h2>Indiana General Assembly\u200c Passes Bill to \u200cLimit Foreign\u200c Adversaries&#8217; Ownership of Indiana Land<\/h2>\n<blockquote>\n<p>The \u2064Indiana General Assembly passed a bill to slightly\u2064 limit foreign adversaries\u2019 \u2062ownership of\u2063 Indiana \u200dland on Friday, sending House Bill 1183 to\u200c Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb\u2019s desk. Holcomb,\u2063 as \u200dchairman of\u200c the Indiana\u200b Economic Development Corporation \u2063(IEDC), has overseen the state\u2019s 11 pending economic deals \u2063with China-owned\u2063 companies that HB1183 seeks to prohibit.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>If Holcomb \u200bsigns the \u2064bill, HB 1183\u200b will go into effect \u200don July 1, \u200b2024. So what will happen with these 11 pending deals \u2064between now \u200band July 1? \u2063The \u2063IEDC could rush to complete its plans\u200b before the July\u200c deadline. Local governments and communities\u2064 would have a better\u200b chance to apply oversight \u2062and stop these deals in that time with more\u2064 information about who\u200d these Chinese companies\u200c are and where they are trying to go. But information\u2063 has not been forthcoming.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2-long d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-656301540\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1379703300879-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-b3240736c13ca5f8eae83611433fc3f4 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-b3240736c13ca5f8eae83611433fc3f4\"><\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<p>The governor\u2019s office, in lockstep with the IEDC, has provided minimal information about these China deals in response\u200d to \u200brequests from The Federalist, \u2062this author, and even\u200b the \u200bIndiana Senate. \u200cHowever, the IEDC is subject\u2063 to Indiana\u2019s Open Door Law \u200c(ODL), which requires public \u2064meetings and the timely distribution of meeting \u2064minutes to \u2063fulfill \u201cgovernment\u2019s responsibility to\u2062 foster transparency, trust and accountability\u2062 for its official actions.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>A \u2062review of the posted files related to quarterly public meetings and presentations within \u2062IEDC\u2019s \u201ctransparency portal\u201d\u200c reveals missing 2023 Q4 files, even though we\u2019re already nearly three months past 2023\u2019s \u2063fourth quarter. The\u200b Indiana Senate began deliberating about HB 1183\u2064 in the 2024 legislative session. Many of these deals were likely to be discussed in public meetings during the fourth quarter\u2062 of 2023, directly preceding the session.<\/p>\n<p>I requested these documents \u2064from IEDC. According to the ODL policy, government agencies have seven days to acknowledge a document\u2063 request\u200d and 30 days\u2062 to provide the missing documents before the next \u200bstep of a formal complaint. When I called the Office of the Public\u2064 Access Counselor (which administers Indiana\u2019s Open Door Law) about this, they confirmed \u2064that IEDC is subject to Open Door Law and that IEDC is currently in breach of ODL with its missing \u2064documents.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Beyond the missing\u2064 documents, as The Federalist reported, IEDC deters legislative oversight by using \u201ccode names\u201d for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-hunter-biden-still-owns-stake-in-chinese-equity-firm\/\" title=\"Report: Hunter Biden still owns stake in Chinese equity firm\">foreign business deals<\/a> until they are concluded. These code names obscure the company\u2019s name and country \u2064of origin so\u2064 public discussion is meaningless \u200dto\u2062 the listening public. How does \u200dthis conduct fulfill the Open Door Law? I asked the Office of the Public \u200cAccess\u200d Counselor (OPAC), which administers ODL. The OPAC is reviewing this question.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>The concern is \u200bthat the IEDC is entertaining, if not actively seeking, deals to sell Indiana land to a country unequivocally considered a grave adversarial threat at least since a\u2063 Chinese\u200c spy balloon traversed the entire continent in\u200b February 2023.\u2064 China, led \u2064by the Chinese \u2062Communist Party (CCP), is an adversary. The \u200bCCP\u2063 controls all\u2064 Chinese\u200b entities including private businesses, which it has directed to contribute\u200b to \u201cnational intelligence work.\u201d The IEDC deliberately pursues these de facto CCP deals on U.S.\u2063 soil in a shroud of secrecy masked as \u201cprivacy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But privacy has little role in the work of U.S.\u2064 government. IEDC as a government agency must provide transparency on these 11 China deals and intended business partners generally so state and local government can provide the\u200b oversight required in a society ruled by the\u200b people through their elected representatives.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> How can the lack of information\u2063 and transparency about these deals affect the ability of local governments and communities to\u200c oversee and potentially halt\u200d them?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  E\u2064 to the nature of the bill and its impact on foreign ownership of Indiana land. However, as of now, there\u2064 is a \u2064lack of information available to the public regarding these deals and the intentions of the Chinese companies involved.<\/p>\n<p>The passing of HB 1183 by the Indiana \u200cGeneral Assembly aims\u2064 to limit the \u2064ownership of Indiana \u200dland by foreign adversaries, particularly China-owned companies. Governor Eric Holcomb, who also serves as the chairman of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC),\u2063 is responsible for overseeing the state&#8217;s \u2062economic \u2064deals with these companies. This bill seeks to prohibit such deals and is currently awaiting \u2063Governor Holcomb&#8217;s signature.<\/p>\n<p>If the bill is signed into law, it will take effect on July 1, 2024. This raises questions about the fate of the 11 pending economic deals between Indiana and China-owned companies \u200bthat are currently in progress. The IEDC \u2063may attempt to expedite these deals before the July deadline, while local governments and communities will have a better opportunity to apply oversight and potentially halt these \u2064deals \u2062with more \u2062information about the Chinese companies involved.<\/p>\n<p>However, obtaining information about \u2064these deals has proven to be a challenge. \u200bThe governor&#8217;s office, in collaboration with the IEDC, \u2064has provided minimal information in \u2063response to\u200d inquiries from\u200d various sources, including The Federalist, the author of this article, and even the Indiana Senate. This lack of transparency \u200bcreates concerns as the IEDC is obligated to\u200c fulfill the requirements of \u200cIndiana&#8217;s Open Door Law (ODL), which mandates public meetings and the\u2064 timely distribution of meeting minutes to ensure government \u2064transparency and accountability.<\/p>\n<p>Upon reviewing the transparency portal \u200dof the IEDC, it\u200b was found\u200c that the files related to quarterly public meetings\u200c and presentations are incomplete, with missing 2023\u200b Q4 files despite being\u200c several months into 2024. This further adds to the lack of\u200b information available to the public \u200cregarding the ongoing deals and discussions related to HB 1183.<\/p>\n<p>The passage of HB 1183 highlights the importance of transparency in government actions and the need for accountability when it comes to economic\u2062 deals with foreign entities. It is essential for the public to be informed about these\u200d deals to ensure that the state&#8217;s interests are protected and \u2063that \u2063any potential risks or consequences are properly \u200bevaluated.<\/p>\n<p>As \u200bthe bill awaits Governor Holcomb&#8217;s decision, it\u2063 is crucial for the public to demand transparency \u2063from their elected officials and to ensure that the requirements of the Open Door Law are upheld. The implications of foreign ownership of Indiana land need to be \u2063thoroughly \u200dconsidered \u2063and weighed against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/blackburn-introduces-amendments-to-counter-china-and-iran\/\" title=\"Blackburn Introduces Amendments to Counter China and Iran\">national security concerns<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dems-critics-worried-biden-wont-release-trump-tax-returns\/\" title=\"Dems, Critics Worried Biden Won't Release Trump Tax Returns\">long-term interests<\/a>\u2063 of the state.<\/p>\n<p>In conclusion, the passing of HB 1183 by \u200bthe Indiana General Assembly signals\u200d a move towards limiting\u200d foreign adversaries&#8217; ownership of Indiana \u200bland, particularly\u200d China-owned companies. The fate of the pending economic deals between Indiana \u200band these companies remains\u200b uncertain, and the\u200d lack\u2064 of information available to the\u2062 public raises concerns about transparency and accountability. It\u2063 is imperative for\u2062 the public to be kept\u2063 informed and for government officials\u200d to fulfill their obligations under the Open Door Law. The decision surrounding HB 1183 and the future \u2063of foreign ownership of Indiana land will have significant implications for \u200cthe state and its\u200c residents.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Indiana General Assembly approved a bill restricting foreign adversaries&#8217; ownership of Indiana land. House Bill 1183 is now awaiting Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb&#8217;s approval. As chairman of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, Holcomb has been involved in 11 economic deals with China-owned companies, which the bill aims to prevent<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2855,"featured_media":2198078,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/52471095435_6a6603bd21_h.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2198077","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/52471095435_6a6603bd21_h.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2855"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2198077"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2198077\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2198078"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2198077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2198077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2198077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}