PENNSYLVANIA
Herald Courier
Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Legislation in Pennsylvania to give victims of child sexual abuse more time to sue took another step forward in the Senate on Tuesday, although not without debate over whether people who have lost the legal ability to sue should get it back.
As a result, the Senate Judiciary Committee’s vote narrowed portions of a bill that passed the House overwhelmingly in April, but broadened the proposal in other parts.
It comes amid scandals involving the Roman Catholic Church in Pennsylvania and a renewed push in Pennsylvania and other states to relax laws that prevent some child sexual abuse victims from suing for damages.
The committee’s half-hour hearing was dominated by debate over a House provision opposed by the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference and the Insurance Federation of Pennsylvania, which represents for-profit insurers, and the Senate committee ultimately removed it. That provision would have given victims the ability to sue, even if they are now older than the current legal age limit of 30.
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