ALBANY – Victims of child sexual abuse in New York will soon get their chance to seek civil justice against their abusers and the institutions that harbored them regardless of how long ago the crimes occurred.

The state Legislature on Monday overwhelmingly approved for the Child Victims Act, a long-stalled measure that will relax the state's strict statute of limitations on sexual crimes against children and open up a one-year window to revive past claims of any age.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is expected to soon sign it. He and the bill's sponsors announced an agreement on bill language late last week.

Victims from across the state traveled to the Capitol on Monday for the vote, the culmination of more than a decade of lobbying by advocates who have long said the state's statute of limitations was far too restrictive.

"Nothing will make the trauma disappear as if it never happened, but if we feel seen and heard, we can begin to heal and trust that our lives have a purpose," said Brian Toale, 65, a New York City resident who was abused in high school.

"By exposing predators and the enablers who have until now avoided accountability, we can protect future generations of children ensuring perpetrators never again have access to our vulnerable children."

What the Child Victims Act does

The Child Victims Act would do three major things:

Extend New York's statute of limitations to allow for criminal charges against sexual abusers of children until their victims turn 28 for felony cases, up from the current 23. Allow victims to seek civil action against their abusers and institutions that enabled them until they turn 55. Open up a one-year, one-time-only period to allow all victims to seek civil action, regardless of how long ago the abuse occurred.

Sen. Brad Hoylman and Assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal, both Manhattan Democrats, have sponsored versions of the Child Victims Act in recent years, but the measure never made it past the Senate amid opposition from the Catholic Church and the insurance industry.

But in November, Democrats won a majority in the Senate for the first time in a decade, with many of their candidates vowing to push for a vote on the measure.

Cuomo met at the state Capitol on Monday morning with advocates and victims, expressing his support for the legislation and saying he was sorry it took years for the bill to pass.

The Democratic governor has been blasted by Catholic leaders for his support of the measure, as well as signing into law stronger abortion rights last week.

But Cuomo, who is Catholic, said he is unfazed by the criticism, saying running government and passing laws isn't about the beliefs of one religion or another.

"I feel I am wholly in line with what Pope Francis has said on this issue," Cuomo said. "I understand the church bureaucracies’ issue. There could be financial ramifications. There could be embarrassment. And that’s more because of the way they handled the issue."

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Victory for victims

Monday's vote was a major victory for survivors of child sexual abuse who have organized in greater numbers each year at the Capitol, pushing for a vote on the measure.

They were organized in part by Gary Greenberg, a survivor who founded the Fighting for Children PAC, a political group that supported candidates who backed the bill and fought against those who blocked it.

Greenberg and other victims were at the Capitol on Monday for the emotional vote, with some appearing at tearful news conferences marking the bill's passage.

In both chambers, lawmakers shared personal stories of abuse that they have suffered and the ways trauma manifested itself as they processed what had happened.

During the vote, at least four lawmakers said they were victims of sexual abuse.

Assemblywoman Yuh-Line Niou, D-Manhattan, tearfully thanked her colleagues for supporting the bill. She discussed the grief she felt when she learned her abuser had victimized another girl and the ways it continues to affect her personal relationships and daily routine.

"There's not a single day that this doesn't affect me," she said. "There's not a single time when I've dated somebody and it's been normal. There's not a single time when my relationships with people are not affected."

Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, D-Pelham, Westchester County, spoke of how grief and trauma can cause victims to often stay quiet for years or decades after the abuse occurs.

"For me, the silence lasted for almost 25 years," she said. "And it is almost unthinkable that I could stand here as a New York state senator to speak about something that I thought I would probably take to my grave."

Unanimous Senate vote

The Democrat-controlled Senate voted unanimously in favor of the bill, a margin that was unlikely even a year ago as the Catholic Church raised concerns.

The Assembly, also controlled by Democrats, passed the measure 130-3.

The state Catholic Conference — which, like other Catholic organizations across the country, has dealt with child sexual abuse scandals among the clergy — had long lobbied against the measure, raising concern about its potential to bankrupt dioceses and claiming it unfairly targeted private institutions.

But the organization dropped its opposition late last week when the Legislature adopted language from Cuomo's version of the bill, which ensures public institutions can also be sued during the one-year look-back period.

"We therefore remove our previous opposition and pray that survivors find the healing they so desperately deserve," the Catholic Conference tweeted.

Sen. Rich Funke, R-Perinton, Monroe County, said he was previously troubled by the one-year lookback window, raising concern about the implication it could have on public schools and other institutions.

But he said a Pennsylvania grand jury report last year on widespread abuse within the Catholic Church helped change his mind, convincing him that the lookback window could be victims' only chance at solace.

"Today, I rise to strongly support this legislation and to solute the advocacy, the bravery and the tenacity of the victims that made this day possible," Funke said.

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, apologized to the victims who watched the vote, telling them it should have been approved years ago.

"This is a bittersweet victory but it is an end to a very, very long and arduous journey," she said.

JCAMPBELL1@gannett.com

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