OLYMPIA, Wash.- The Washington State Senate advanced a bill designating members of the clergy as mandatory reporters of child abuse or neglect.
The policy, SB 6298, requires that all clergy in the Evergreen State report any reasonable concern that a child is being abused.
The bill’s primary sponsor, Senator Noel Frame (D- Seattle), hailed the bill’s passage through the chamber as a win for young people throughout the state.
“Mandatory reporters play an essential role in protecting children. Just as teachers, doctors, and other trusted adults who work with children have the legal responsibility of being mandatory reporters of child abuse, members of the clergy have that same trusting relationship and should carry the same responsibility,” Frame said.
SB 6298 is Frame’s second attempt to pass a clergy mandatory reporting bill. During the 2023 legislative session, a bill which required clergy to report child abuse died in committee.
The previous version of the bill did not contain exceptions for religious practices which allow information to be confessed to a trusted spiritual advisor, such as the sacrament of reconciliation practiced by Catholics.
Spokane bishop Thomas Daly condemned the earlier version of the bill along with the Washington State Catholic Conference (WSCC), arguing that all priests who interact with children are already mandatory reporters with the exemption of information obtained in the confessional, and that the bill was a hostile intrusion into the spiritual lives of citizens.
“I want to assure you that your shepherds, bishop and priests, are committed to keeping the seal of confession – even to the point of going to jail. The Sacrament of Penance is sacred and will remain that way in the Diocese of Spokane,” Daly said.
The current version of the bill contains exemptions for religious practices in which an individual confesses actions to a member of the clergy in a private and personal manner. The language of the bill uses the term “penitential communication” to describe such practices.
The WSCC has offered input on the new version of the bill, and has asked that the sacrament of reconciliation remain exempted from the mandatory reporting language. Executive Director Jean Hill offered testimony before the Senate Human Services Committee on Jan. 25, expressing support of minor protections while asserting an objection to any legal language which would include penitential communication.
According to Frame’s office, the new policy includes a penitential communication exemption, but does require clergy to report reasonable suspicion of child abuse even if that information is derived from a religious confession. Whether that change in language is acceptable to religious leaders across the state is still unclear.
