A new Washington state law requires Catholic priests and other religious community leaders of different faiths to report potential child abuse to state authorities.

But does the law signed by Gov. Bob Ferguson on May 2 raise constitutional issues?

The question is central to a new federal civil rights probe launched under President Donald Trump’s Administration.

The Justice Department is investigating the passage of Washington State Senate Bill 5375, labeling the law in a May 5 news release as “anti-Catholic.”

The agency said the law “appears on its face to violate the First Amendment” by not providing an exception “for the absolute seal of confidentiality that applies to Catholic Priests.”

In response to the Justice Department probe, Ferguson said in a statement to McClatchy News on May 6 that: “We look forward to protecting Washington kids from sexual abuse in the face of this ‘investigation’ from the Trump Administration.”

The new state law will go into effect July 27, The News Tribune reported.

Are priests mandated reporters?

As part of the religious tradition of the Catholic faith, specifically the Sacrament of Reconciliation, priests are meant to keep any information shared during a confession private.

With Washington’s new law, priests and other clergy members are now mandated reporters. That means they’re obligated to share any information on potential child abuse they become aware of.

In addition to priests, ordained ministers, rabbis and imams are listed as other examples of clergy members.

“When any member of the clergy … has reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect, he or she shall report such incident, or cause a report to be made, to the proper law enforcement agency or to the department,” the law states.

The same goes for public employees in the state, including police officers, medical professionals and educators.

However, the law makes an exception for public employees that doesn’t apply to clergy members.

“Except for members of the clergy, no one shall be required to report under this section when he or she obtains the information solely as a result of a privileged communication,” the law says.

Though clergy members don’t fall under this exception, they can’t be required to testify in court about suspected child abuse, The Washington State Standard reported.

Mary Dispenza, a founder of the Catholic Accountability Project, an advocacy group based in Seattle, told the news outlet the law will ensure children “will be safer.”

The new statute isn’t unique to Washington, as noted by the outlet.

States with similar laws

Several U.S. states have laws listing clergy members as mandated reporters, but the majority of those states allow exceptions for church leaders when it comes to communication related to their religious beliefs, including during religious confessions, according to a May 2023 report by the Child Welfare Information Gateway, a government-funded information service.

Now, similar to New Hampshire and West Virginia, Washington won’t allow clergy members to have that privilege, The Washington State Standard reported.

As of 2023, New Hampshire and West Virginia were the only two U.S. states with laws designating religious leaders as mandated reporters that don’t allow exemptions for reporting child abuse, according to the Child Welfare Information Gateway’s report.

A few other states, such as North Carolina and Texas, don’t explicitly list clergy as mandated reporters but may consider them as such, the report says. These states also don’t allow exceptions for clergy members when it comes to “cases of suspected child abuse or neglect.”

The Justice Department Civil Rights Division is leading the investigation into Washington’s new law and whether it violates freedom of religion under the First Amendment.

The full text of the law can be read here.

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