BILL NUMBER: SJR 17	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE   JULY 6, 1999

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Haynes

                        MAY 17, 1999

   Senate Joint Resolution No. 17--Relative to child sexual abuse.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SJR 17, as amended, Haynes.  Child sexual abuse.
   This measure would respectfully urge the President and Congress to
reject and condemn any suggestions that sexual relations between
children and adults are anything but abusive, destructive,
exploitive, reprehensible, and punishable by law.   The measure
would also request the American Psychological Association to
repudiate and disassociate itself from any organization or
publication that advocates sexual interaction between children and
adults, or any study that suggests or claims that sexual
relationships between adults and children are not harmful. 
   Fiscal committee:  no.




   WHEREAS, Children are a precious gift and responsibility; and
   WHEREAS, The spiritual, physical, and mental well-being of
children is our sacred duty; and
   WHEREAS, No segment of our society is more critical to the future
of human survival and society than our children; and
   WHEREAS, It is the obligation of all public policymakers not only
to support, but also to defend the health and rights of parents,
families, and children; and
   WHEREAS, Information endangering to children is being made public
and, in some instances, may be given unwarranted or unintended
credibility through release under professional titles or through
professional organizations; and
   WHEREAS, Elected officials have a duty to inform and counter
actions they consider damaging to children, parents, families, and
society; and
   WHEREAS, California has made sexual molestation of a child a
felony and has declared parents who sexually molest their children to
be unfit; and
   WHEREAS, Virtually all studies in this area, including those
published by the American Psychological Association, condemn child
sexual abuse as criminal and harmful to children; and 
   WHEREAS, The American Psychological Association has recently
published a study that suggests that sexual relationships between
adults and willing children are less harmful than believed and might
even be positive for "willing" children; and 
   WHEREAS, The American Psychological Association in July 1998,
published a review of 59 studies of college aged students indicating
that some sexual relationships between adults and children may be
less harmful than believed, and that some of the college students
viewed their experiences as positive at the time they occurred, or
positive when reflecting back on them; and 
   WHEREAS, The American Psychological Association is a highly
respected organization, and by publishing a professional opinion, the
association lends legitimacy to  any issue; and
   WHEREAS, The publication of the study, "A Meta-Analytic
Examination of Assumed Properties of Child Sexual Abuse Using College
Samples," thus lends legitimacy to the deviant issue of pedophilia;
now,   any issue; now,  therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Senate and Assembly of the State of California,
jointly, That the Legislature respectfully urges the President and
Congress to reject and condemn, in the strongest honorable written
and vocal terms possible, any suggestions that sexual relations
between children and adults are anything but abusive, destructive,
exploitive, reprehensible, and punishable by law; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Legislature condemns and  denounces all
suggestions in the recently published study by the American
Psychological Association entitled "A Meta-Analytic Examination of
Assumed Properties of Child Sexual Abuse Using College Samples," that
indicates sexual relationships between adults and "willing" children
are less harmful than believed and might even be positive for
"willing" children; and be it further   denounces the
conclusions of, and any and all persons or organizations who would
utilize, the recently published study entitled "A Meta-Analytic
Examination of Assumed Properties of Child Sexual Abuse Using College
Samples," which advocate that sexual relationships between adults
and children are not harmful and are even positive for children; and
be it further 
   Resolved, That the Legislature encourages competent investigations
to continue to research the effects of child sexual abuse using the
best methodology so that the public and public policymakers may act
upon accurate information; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Legislature requests that the American
Psychological Association denounce the report it recently published
regarding child sexual abuse; and be it further 
   RESOLVED, That the Legislature requests that the American
Psychological Association repudiate and disassociate itself from any
organization or publication that advocates sexual interaction between
children and adults and any study that suggests or otherwise claims
that sexual relationships between adults and children are not
harmful; and be it further 
   Resolved, That the Legislature requests California defense
attorneys and California courts to disregard the study when dealing
with cases involving child abuse and child molestation; and be it
further
   Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States,
the Governor of California, the majority leader of the Senate, the
Speaker of the House of Representatives, and to each Senator and
Representative from California in the Congress of the United States.