The Justice Department has initiated a civil rights investigation into Washington State's Senate Bill 5375. This bill, signed into law by Governor Bob Ferguson on May 2, 2025, mandates that clergy members report information received in confessional settings related to child abuse or neglect. The law does not allow for the traditional confidentiality upheld by Catholic priests.
The new legislation also identifies clergy as the only supervisors who cannot use legal privileges, such as religious confessions, as a defense for mandatory reporting. This raises concerns about its compatibility with the First Amendment's protection of religious freedom.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division expressed concern over the implications of SB 5375. Dhillon stated, "SB 5375 demands that Catholic Priests violate their deeply held faith in order to obey the law, a violation of the Constitution and a breach of the free exercise of religion cannot stand under our Constitutional system of government." She further noted that "the law appears to single out clergy as not entitled to assert applicable privileges, as compared to other reporting professionals."
The Civil Rights Division will examine how this law aligns with constitutional rights and anticipates cooperation from Washington State during this investigation.