Sacramento – At a press conference today at Sacramento City College, Assemblymember Roger Dickinson (D-Sacramento) announced he will introduce a bill to require all organizations that employ athletic coaches, administrators and directors to provide training on the identification of child abuse and neglect, inappropriate and illegal contact with a minor, and mandated reporting requirements.

“As a former high school and collegiate athlete myself, I know firsthand the position of trust that coaches have with their athletes,” said Assemblymember Dickinson. “This close relationship and bond should never be exploited to hurt a child and we need to do all we can to prevent it. Closing the coaching gap in California’s Mandated Reporter law and requiring athletic coaches, administrators, and directors receive the sexual abuse and neglect training required by this legislation, takes a big step forward in achieving that goal,” he added.

Currently, people working in a variety of professions are required to report instances of child sexual abuse and neglect. However, there is a shortcoming in current law; athletic coaches, administrators and directors are not included. In light of recent events involving athletic coaches and their supervisors failing to make timely reports of alleged instances of child abuse and neglect, it is imperative that training in the identification and reporting of child abuse be required. This legislation will ensure that there is no mistake or confusion that coaches, administrators and athletic directors should be included as Mandated Reporters.

The bill, introduced in January when the Legislature reconvenes, will be applicable to all organizations (public and private) that employ athletic coaches, administrators and directors who coach individuals under the age of 25. The measure will specifically define the types of training to be provided, including the identification of child sexual abuse and neglect, what information should be reported, and the responsibilities of mandated reporting under California law.

California has long taken the lead in making sure people are safe in their workplace and that their civil rights are protected. For example, the state has mandated employers provide sexual harassment training in organizations that employ 50 or more workers. It is at least as important that children are similarly protected and that every precaution be taken to ensure that goal.

Studies have shown that as many as one in three girls and one in seven boys will be sexually abused at some point in their childhood. In as many as 93 percent of child sexual cases, the child knows the person that commits the abuse. Eighty-eight percent of cases of sexual abuse are never reported to the authorities.