Independent Audit

Every three years, an independent, in-person audit of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland’s safe environment procedures is conducted by StoneBridge Business Partners, a New York-based company with expertise in compliance auditing. This audit includes all 48 parishes and 144 churches in Maine. The last review, covering the period from July 1, 2020, to September 30, 2023, found that the diocese was in full compliance with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.

In addition to the comprehensive three-year audit, the diocese provides a report to StoneBridge Business Partners each year. The next in-person audit will cover the time period of April 1, 2023 through September 30, 2026.

The diocese, which requests the independent audits, has been found compliant with the charter through the auditing process for well over 20 years.

Nearly 28,000 employees and volunteers have participated in the safe environment program since its inception, which includes training and background checks.

First approved by the U.S. Bishops in 2002 and revised in 2011 and again in 2018, the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People establishes a comprehensive set of procedures to ensure a safe environment for children. The charter mandates permanently removing clergy who have sexually abused minor, reaching out to victims and their families with compassion, reporting allegations of sexual abuse of minors to civil authorities, investigating complaints of abuse in a thorough manner, conducting background checks for all personnel, providing abuse prevention and awareness training for all personnel and volunteers who work with children, and establishing safe environment programs.