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	Catholic Reform Group Calls for Tougher Rules on Abuse Financial Records Also a Concern By Ken Kusmer Associated Press, carried in The Courier-Journal [Indianapolis IN] July 11, 2005 INDIANAPOLIS -- The Catholic lay reform group Voice of the Faithful approved draft resolutions yesterday calling for tougher laws against abusive priests and the bishops who have protected them and for greater financial transparency in the church. Nearly 600 local organizers approved nine draft resolutions that also called for, among other things, the election of bishops by representatives of a dioceses' laity and clergy, greater collaboration between clergy and laity, and a lay voice in diocesan and U.S. church decisions. Bishops, who hold ultimate decision-making power in their dioceses and the U.S. church, likely will reject most of the proposals contained in the resolutions. And some of the proposals are outside their control, such as the resolution to "promote legislation that protects children and holds bishops accountable for their failure to protect their children." "The message was we've got to be a stronger voice on the statutes of limitations," Jim Post, president of the Newton, Mass.-based group, said after the meeting. Voice of the Faithful, which claims more than 30,000 members, and other groups have worked to change state laws that restrict abuse victims from suing or filing charges against their attackers. Louisiana's legislature last month approved a bill extending the statute of limitations on child sex abuse crimes to 30 years from 10 years. Ohio legislation that so far has cleared its state senate would give adults 20 years to file charges or sue for abuse that occurred while they were children. Catholic bishops have actively lobbied against the Ohio bill, said its sponsor, Sen. Robert Spada, a suburban Cleveland Republican who presented a workshop on the legislative process during the three-day Voice meeting at the Indiana Convention Center. Victim advocates say longer statutes of limitations are needed to allow abuse victims time to recover repressed memories of the events. Lawsuit settlements have cost dioceses millions. The Archdiocese of Louisville paid $25.7 million to 243 victims who started filing lawsuits in April 2002. And the total cost of the scandal has been more than $29 million, archdiocesan spokeswoman Cecelia Price has said, including other settlements and money for such purposes as counseling for victims. Most recently, the Diocese of Covington agreed to a $120 million settlement. If approved by a judge, the $120 million would be in addition to $11.7 million paid in the past 18 months to settle more than 50 claims of sexual abuse, a diocesan spokesman has said. The $11.7 million is made up of almost $4 million from diocesan savings, with $80 million of the settlement available only if the diocese gets the money from its insurance carriers through a lawsuit. The resolutions did not become official Voice of the Faithful policy. Some local affiliates might choose to pursue some of the proposals immediately, Post said, pointing specifically to those addressing tougher laws and financial transparency. At its national level, Voice of the Faithful's newly elected, 26-member national council will take the nine resolutions, study and hone them, and select one or a few as action goals that the group will promote across the country, Post said. "It is definitely a work in progress," he said. Jim Silko of Englewood, Ohio, spoke on behalf of a working group that drafted a resolution calling for independent audits for all church-related entities. He noted the Archdiocese of Milwaukee in 2002 used a real estate fund to pay a $450,000 settlement to a man who alleged a sexual assault by then-Archbishop Rembert G. Weakland. "Where will it end? Where will this nonsense stop?" Silko said. A second financial resolution calls on parishes and dioceses to consult with the laity on such matters and to fully report income and spending. Some of the resolutions were controversial. One calling for discussion of issues affecting "women and other marginalized people within the church" drew objections that its language excludes men and that it would cost the organization support among other Catholics.