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  Child-Abuse Bills Would Cover Clergy, Nonprofits

By Janet I. Tu
Seattle Times [Washington]
January 26, 2005

Those pushing for a law requiring clergy to report suspected child abuse and neglect to civil authorities hope the third time's the charm.

Only this time, the word "clergy" isn't even included in the bills.

Yesterday, Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson, D-Seattle, introduced House Bill 1467, which would require any employee, contractor or volunteer of a nonprofit organization to tell civil authorities if they suspect a co-worker of abusing or neglecting a child.

Last week, Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, D-Seattle, introduced Senate Bill 5308, requiring supervisors in nonprofit and for-profit organizations to report suspected acts of abuse or neglect by subordinates who work with or have unsupervised contact with children.

The bills would apply to clergy, since houses of worship are considered nonprofits, the two legislators said.

Dickerson and Kohl-Welles have sponsored legislation in the past two years that would have added clergy to the list of professionals — including nurses and psychologists — already required to report suspected abuse. Both years the bills failed.

"People got hung up on the word 'clergy,' " said Dickerson, who hopes that omitting the word will ensure passage.

Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, who voted against such bills in the past, is one of the sponsors of Kohl-Welles' bill this year.

"I didn't see any reason to single out any particular organization or profession when this is an issue that should cover everybody," Hargrove said of his opposition in the past. "I don't see it as a witch hunt for any particular organization or profession."

Previous bills were drafted at least partly in response to sexual-abuse scandals in the Roman Catholic Church, in which bishops nationwide have been accused of failing to report incidents of abuse by priests they supervised.

The Washington State Catholic Conference, the lobbying arm for the state's three dioceses, supported the previous bills and "certainly we don't have any problems with the concept" of the newest ones, said executive director Sister Sharon Park. All three dioceses already require employees to report suspected child abuse to civil authorities.

The Rev. John Boonstra, executive minister for the Washington Association of Churches, says his group, which represents nine Protestant denominations, is also supportive.

Past religious opposition has come from Washington Evangelicals for Responsible Government (WERG), a conservative Christian lobbying group. Requiring clergy to report "represents a state intrusion into the church," said Pastor Joseph Fuiten, president of WERG. "If they can tell me to do that, what else can they tell me to do?"

Fuiten said his organization wants to take a closer look at the current bills before taking a position.

Currently, about 25 states include clergy among those required to report suspected child abuse or neglect, and about 18 states require such reporting from anyone.

In Washington state, violating the mandatory-reporting statute is a gross misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and up to $5,000 in fines.

 
 

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