Pennsylvania Lookback Bill for Child Abuse Survivors Stalls

A bipartisan amendment to the Pennsylvania Constitution that would open a two-year “lookback window” for survivors of childhood sexual assault has again failed to advance. The measure cleared the Democrat-controlled state House in June but was not taken up by the Republican-controlled Senate. Under state law, a constitutional amendment must pass two consecutive sessions with identical language; the bill is set to expire at the end of the legislative session on November 30 after Senate leaders tied it to a separate voter-identification proposal.

The Guardian

Efforts to create a lookback window date back to at least 2018, spurred by revelations of a large-scale abuse scandal in the state’s Catholic Church that implicated more than 300 priests and harmed at least 1,000 children. In 2021, “internal systemic failures” during former Governor Tom Wolf’s administration blocked a statewide referendum on similar reform. Similar statutes have been enacted in several states, most notably New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which generated over 2,500 lawsuits and contributed to an $800 million settlement for more than 1,300 clergy-abuse victims.

The Guardian

Former Democratic House speaker Mark Rozzi expressed disappointment that Senate Republicans did not advance the amendment and criticized Governor Josh Shapiro for not doing more to secure its passage. Republican Senate leaders argued that linking the amendment to a voter-ID measure was necessary, framing the delay as a procedural issue rather than a policy dispute. Democratic state senator Maria Collett highlighted the November 3 midterm elections as a chance for a Democratic trifecta to move the reform to the governor’s desk, noting that a re-elected Shapiro would improve prospects for a lookback window.

The Guardian

• New York’s Adult Survivors Act (effective 2002) prompted more than 2,500 lawsuits.

The Guardian

• The 2020 Child Victims Act settlement in New York paid $800 million to over 1,300 victims.

The Guardian

• Polling by Politics PA projects a 65 % chance Democrats will capture the state Senate and a 90 % chance they will retain the House.

The Guardian

• “Victims that are hanging on for this law to pass and victims who haven’t come forward yet, they deserve their day in court,” — Mark Rozzi

The Guardian

• “Survivors of childhood sexual abuse in Pennsylvania, including in Catholic church cases, have waited years for the legislature to give them a real window to hold their abusers accountable in court,” — Maria Collett, democratic state senator

The Guardian