The Long Road to Justice: Lobbying for Statute of Limitations Reform
By Francis Piderit
continued
The Legislation
The Child Victims Act would extend the statute of limitations on child sexual abuse for an additional five years, so that victims will have until the age of 28 to bring claims. The act would suspend the statute for one year, so that those who have been unjustly denied access to the courts in the past will be able to come forward and make a claim in this one-year “window.” Marge Markey of Maspeth, Queens, has been leading the fight for this reform; she has spoken at several VOTF events. The “Markey” bill has been passed by the Assembly in each of the past three years; unfortunately, a Senate version of the same bill never made it out of committee, so the bill died each year. This year, Democrats control both houses of the State Legislature, so there is real hope that SOL reform will become a reality in New York State in 2009. Unfortunately, the Catholic Church through its lobbying arm, the Catholic Conference, is opposed to the reforms that VOTF supports.
The Press Conference
About 100 people crowded into a room in the office building across from the Capitol itself for an 11AM press conference that kicked off the event. Voice of the Faithful was represented by several well-known organizers present, led by Joe Byrnes of Brooklyn. Barbara Blaine of SNAP spoke, as did Prof Marci Hamilton. Survivors spoke, as did co-sponsoring legislators. Significant representatives of Orthodox Jewish organizations such as the Jewish Board of Advocates for Children, Inc. were also present.
The Competing Bill
Mention was made throughout the press conference and throughout the day itself of competing legislation sponsored by Assemblyman Vito Lopez of Brooklyn. This competing bill only extends the statute of limitations to age 25, and has no provision for a “look-back” window, which is the main provision offering justice to survivors of abuse who have been locked out of the courthouse in the past. Although there is no proof that this is the case, there is a suspicion that Assemblyman Lopez’s bill was put forward at the behest of the New York Catholic Conference, which is the lobbying arm of the Catholic bishops in the state, the thinking being that the conference lobbyists, sensing that reform might really happen this year, put forward a weaker bill without a window in order to limit the financial impact of the new legislation.
Head-to-Head with Legislators
For the next four hours, from 12 Noon until 4PM, supporters of our legislation banded into groups of four or five, and visited legislators and their staff for 20-30 minute sessions in which we made our case, asked for their support, and in cases where they were uncommitted or opposed to the Markey/Duane SOL reforms, attempted to get them to commit to reconsidering their position. Some legislators were supportive of our work. Others were flatly opposed. One legislator from the Nyack area argued that our proposed reform did not treat public institutions and private institutions equally. This argument, championed once again by the Catholic Conference, focuses on the New York state law which creates a special 90-day notice of claim for victims of sexual abuse in public institutions such as public schools. The fact is that claims against public institutions brought under federal civil rights law are not subject to this special 90-day notice of claim. But the other side had already gotten to this particular legislator, and we had a hard time getting him to open his mind to the facts. The reality of this head-to-head lobbying is that you need to have a simple message that you can convey quickly and clearly, but you also have to know enough about the nuances of the legislation and its opponents to argue your case.
Prospects for Passage
We remain hopeful that when the Markey/Duane legislation comes to the floor of the Assembly and the Senate, it will prevail. An editorial from The New York Times strongly endorsed our legislation. Newsday, the leading newspaper on Long Island, came out against our bill. We recognize that Democrats have only a slim majority in the Senate, and the bill could go down to defeat in the upper house if only a few Democrats fail to support it. Generally speaking, more conservative Republicans from upstate areas support the Catholic Conference position. As for Governor Patterson, he has expressed reservations about the “window” and has already announced his determination to pass same-sex marriage legislation. Given his political position, he may not want to run counter to the Catholic Church on two major pieces of legislation in one year. So it will be a close-run thing, as they say.
Lessons Learned
SOL reform is at the moment a state-by-state battle. Since the statute of limitations is state law, reforming it means fighting for change one state at a time. Delaware and California have successfully passed reform legislation. Other states have failed. We hope New York will be next. If your VOTF affiliate is planning on supporting SOL reform legislation, here are some simple lessons learned for your own lobbying efforts:
1. Coalitions are smart strategy: When it was just us Catholics supporting this reform, it was easy for opponents to charge that the legislation discriminated against the Catholic Church. When you stand side by side with Orthodox Jewish rabbis and Protestant ministers, you disarm that argument completely.
2. Make your signs now: Lobbying is all about making an impression. There are a lot of different groups all trying to get the attention of legislators. Wear your VOTF buttons, carry signs, and make sure your voice is heard loud and clear. You cannot be bashful or too polite. This is the political arena, and the squeakiest wheels get the oil.
3. Support the Coalition, but Lobby as VOTF: One mistake we made as we lobbied each legislator was that each group walking into an office contained different representations… one survivor or SNAP member, one VOTF member, one representation from a Jewish group. We felt good, but the people we were visiting were just confused. We would have been much smarter to keep all VOTF participants together, and to move as a group from office to office.
At the end of the day, we were all invited to the Assembly Chamber in the Capitol itself and introduced to the legislators. It was a nice way to end the day before the long drive back to New York City. For more information about how the New York Coalition is working to pass this legislation, VOTF members can contact Bob Kristan, a VOTF member and coordinator for the coalition, at nyprotectchildren@gmail.com
