Child abuse scandal may Scuttle N.Y. clergy exemption. (AU Bulletin).

Legislators in New York are considering amending state law to require clergy to report cases of suspected child abuse.

The move comes in the wake of several high-profile reports of child molestation involving priests that have rocked the Roman Catholic Church. Some lawmakers have accused church leaders of covering up the incidents and reassigning priests accused of abuse to other parishes.

New York lawmakers say they are reluctant to take the step but believe something must be done. "We've been very reluctant to do this, and with good reason," Assemblyman John J. McEneny told The New York Times. McEneny, an Albany Democrat, said in March that he would introduce a bill that would add clergy to the list of required reporters of child abuse.

New York's current law, drafted in 1973, requires doctors, nurses and other health-care workers to report suspected child abuse. It was later amended to add dental hygienists, day-care workers, prosecutors, police officers and others whose work puts them into regular contact with children. It has never mentioned clergy.

The Times reported that every state has a law that requires at least some groups of professionals to report child abuse. Eighteen states have very broad statutes that require anyone who encounters abuse to report it, a stipulation that would by default include clergy. Eleven other states mention clergy specifically among their lists of "required reporters."

Some New York legislators are worried that the move will spark resistance.

"It's never been an issue that people were aware of," said Sen. Dale M. Volker, a Republican who chairs the Assembly Codes Committee, which oversees criminal justice matters. "We'll get flak from the Catholics and from other clergy too, I guarantee you. They will see it as an intrusion."

But Dennis Poust, a spokesman for the New York State Catholic Conference, said the bishops would not oppose a law adding clergy to the list of required reporters, as long as it were drafted in such a way as to protect the confidentiality of the confessional.

Massachusetts is also considering amending its required reporter law. Both chambers of the legislature have passed bills adding clergy to the list, but the two proposals are different and must be reconciled before final passage.