From Deseret News archives:
Utahn drafts abortion bill
State legislator set if Roe v. Wade falls
"The honest reason behind this is, No. 1, I'm just plain flat-out against abortion," said Rep. Paul Ray, R-Clearfield.
Ray is currently drafting the legislation, which would take effect only if the nation's highest court overturns its 1973 decision that legalized abortion nationwide. The state must be in a position to act immediately, he said, to prevent a "rush of abortions" in the period of time between the issuance and implementation of any Supreme Court ruling.
A challenge to the controversial Roe v. Wade decision has been anticipated for decades. Ray believes it could come soon through a new South Dakota law that outlaws nearly all abortions, even in cases of rape or incest. Voters will decide in November whether to uphold the law, passed by that state's Legislature earlier this year. If so, a court challenge will almost certainly be filed against the measure and could be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Ray said he was asked by a South Dakota lawmaker to encourage Utah to join in the expected court challenge, but decided that would be going too far and opted instead to run legislation making clear the state's position on abortion.
"Part of this is to show solidarity with the other states that are saying we have the right as states to determine what we're going to allow based on our community standards," he said. "I think you're going to see more than just Utah doing this."
Ray also plans on bringing back his measure that would require doctors to notify women seeking abortions after 20 weeks that the fetus might feel pain and make available information about options to alleviate such pain. The House of Representatives passed the legislation with a 63-8 vote in the 2006 Legislature, but it stalled in the Senate after doctors testified about the lack of medical consensus on whether fetuses at that stage of pregnancy can feel pain.
Ray said Thursday that he intends to reintroduce the bill in the 2007 legislative session, this time with additional evidence to support his position.
"I think I've effectively answered the questions, or at least have the doctors that will be able to answer the questions," he said.
Lawmakers this year did pass one measure intended to reduce the numbers of abortions in Utah. Physicians must now get parental consent at least 24 hours before performing the procedure on anyone under 18 years of age.
According to the Utah Department of Health, 3,665 abortions were performed in the state in 2004. That same year, 10 girls under the age of 15 had abortions in Utah and 148 girls aged 15 to 17 received abortions.
Contributing: Associated Press
E-mail: awelling@desnews.com
