Relief for child sex-abuse survivors revived in Pa. Senate after Wolf administration error – By Angela Couloumbis of Spotlight PA (Philadelphia Inquirer) / April 21 2021
The bill is advancing despite long-standing objections by some Republicans who believe such a change can only legally be made by amending the state constitution.
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HARRISBURG — A key state Senate committee on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved legislation to temporarily allow survivors of decades-old child sexual abuse to sue the perpetrators, an alternative path to justice after a Wolf administration error derailed a previous effort.
The 11-3 vote by the Judiciary Committee positions the bill for a historic floor debate as early as next week, a win for survivors and their advocates who have been pushing for it since the child sexual-abuse cover-up scandal that enveloped the Catholic Church in the early 2000s.
In bringing the bill to a vote Wednesday, the committee’s chair, Sen. Lisa Baker (R., Luzerne), acknowledged long-standing objections by some Republican colleagues in the chamber who believe such a change can only legally be made by amending the state constitution, a lengthy and time-consuming process.
But she noted that the legislature had already gone down that path — one that was set to end with voters weighing in on the question this May — only to be thwarted by a “colossal failure” by the Department of State.
