New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Monday signed five of a group of seven bills dubbed the "Katie Brennan Bills" by their chief sponsors, named after the woman who went public with allegations that she was raped by a colleague while working on the gubernatorial campaign in 2017.

Brennan, 32, had accused a colleague, Albert Alvarez, of raping her in April of that year before he joined Gov. Murphy's administration. Both ended up in high-level positions after Murphy was sworn in as New Jersey's 56th governor in January 2018.

The five bills Murphy signed were passed Dec. 16 by the Senate after sailing through the Assembly in June. Sponsors say they are intended to reflect the recommendations by the Legislative Select Oversight Committee's report made public last summer on ensuring a safe workplace, strengthening employer training and hiring practices, and changing how allegations of sexual misconduct are investigated, among other safeguards. More importantly, they are meant to help prevent sexual misconduct in state government and administrations in transition.

Sens. Loretta Weinberg, D-Bergen, and Kristin Corrado, R-Bergen, are the primary sponsors. One of the five bills, S-3983, lists Weinberg as the sole sponsor.

The five signed into law  are as follows:

•  S-3975 requires the chairperson of the Civil Service Commission to designate a Civil Service-based human resources professional to serve as equal employment opportunity and affirmative action officer for gubernatorial transitions.

• S.3976 amends the Gubernatorial Transition Act to authorize payment of expenses related to confidential character, financial, and criminal background investigations of applicants for positions of a lower rank than cabinet-level when deemed necessary by the governor-elect or the governor-elect's designated assistant.

• S-3979 requires the Civil Service Commission to promulgate rules and regulations concerning record-keeping and record retention requirements related to the recruitment, selection, hiring and employment records of persons in the state unclassified service.

• S-3982: specifies certain requirements for rules governing a state agency's review of equal employment and discrimination complaints.

•  S-3983 requires the Civil Service Commission to ensure that all state employees responsible for managing and investigating complaints of harassment or discrimination receive additional training by the New Jersey Attorney General's Advocacy Institute or another organization with expertise in response to and prevention of sexual violence.

Also, the final two pieces of the bill package cleared the Senate each by a 39-0 vote on the same day: S-3980/A-5629 would clarify provisions concerning the disclosure of the existence and content of discrimination or harassment complaints, while  S-3981/A-5630 would require the Civil Service Commission to establish a toll-free telephone hotline through which an employee of any state agency could confidentially report a suspected incident of discrimination or harassment in the workplace.

Brennan last month told the Law Journal she was "grateful to the senators for their commitment to reform," calling the measures "a welcome first step."

After Murphy became governor, Brennan became chief of staff to the state Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, a position she still holds, while Alvarez landed a top job at the New Jersey Schools Development Authority. He was forced to resign from the $140,000-a-year job after Brennan's rape allegations became public and caused a firestorm. Alvarez has denied any wrongdoing and hasn't been convicted of any crime.

Brennan filed a civil suit on Jan. 7, 2019 in Mercer County Superior Court against the state and Alvarez. The suit is seeking damages and an emergent application to rewrite the state's policies and practices concerning the conduct of confidential workplace investigations.

The LSOC committee was formed last year to investigate hiring practices of the Murphy administration, and specifically to determine how Alvarez was hired for a top job amid sexual assault allegations by Brennan. The hearings and five-month investigation culminated in a 119-page report that outlined what were determined to be failures and mishandlings by the Murphy administration and provided recommendations on how best to ensure a safe workplace.

The Assembly versions of the Weinberg-Corrado bills that Murphy signed were passed by the full Assembly on June 20.

Days after the Senate endorsed the bill package, just before Christmas, Weinberg, who is the Senate majority leader and a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, announced that she also was forming an ad hoc committee to investigate what she describes as a prevailing hostile work environment for women in state politics after allegations surfaced in a recent news report that several had experienced sexual harassment and assault on the job.

On Monday the Governor's Office issued a statement on the five bills after Murphy signed them. The governor expressed disappointment that his proposed amendments to make the bills apply to all branches of government, including the Legislature and judiciary, weren't considered.

"It is deeply disappointing that the Legislature would develop reforms to protect victims of sexual harassment and assault and refuse to include themselves in the scope of these reforms," Murphy said.

Weinberg in a responding statement described Murphy's remarks as "hypocritical" and said she looked forward to "Gov. Murphy signing all of the Katie Brennan Bills."