Washington Legislature Passes Bill Requiring Clergy to Report Suspected Child Abuse Without Confession Exemption

Washington legislators have passed a significant law requiring clergy to report suspected child abuse or neglect, marking a major shift in the state’s approach to child safety. The bill, Senate Bill 5375, sponsored by Sen. Noel Frame, D-Seattle, passed the House 64-31 on April 11 and now awaits Gov. Bob Ferguson’s signature to become law. This legislation makes clergy mandatory reporters without exemptions for confessions, a stark departure from current practices in Washington, which has historically not required clergy to report suspected abuse.

The law emerged from years of debate over balancing religious freedom with child protection. Frame, a survivor of child sexual abuse, has been a driving force behind the bill. She emphasized the importance of trusted adults in a child’s life, citing her own experience of abuse that only ceased when she confided in a teacher, a mandatory reporter. “Children need trusted adults,” she stated on the Senate floor, underscoring the need for accountability and intervention.

The push for the law was influenced by national revelations of abuse within religious institutions, including the Catholic Church. Frame reintroduced the legislation in 2023 following InvestigateWest’s investigation into child sexual abuse by Jehovah’s Witnesses and the legal loopholes that allowed such cases to remain hidden. This context highlights the broader concern over how religious institutions handle allegations of abuse, particularly within confidential settings like confessions.

While most states include clergy as mandatory reporters, many provide exceptions for confessional disclosures. Washington’s new law eliminates this exception, requiring clergy to report abuse regardless of how they learned of it. However, the law does not compel clergy to testify in court about such communications, preserving some level of confidentiality.

During previous debates, the confessional exemption became a contentious issue. Catholic lobbyists argued for the protection of religious freedom and the sanctity of confession, opposing any version of the bill that would require priests to report information shared in that context. In 2023, they successfully lobbied against a version of the bill that would have required priests to warn authorities if a child was in danger without disclosing specifics. Another bill in 2024 maintained the confessional loophole, but some Democratic lawmakers felt it was too lenient.

This legislative effort reflects a growing recognition of the need to protect vulnerable individuals, even within religious contexts. The law aligns with the biblical theme of protecting the vulnerable, as seen in Proverbs 31:8-9, which calls for advocating for those who cannot speak for themselves. The passage of this law underscores a commitment to ensuring that children have access to the support and protection they need, regardless of the setting in which abuse is disclosed.

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