Constitution panel OKs measure that may change abortion rights

TALLAHASSEE — Abortion restrictions would face fewer legal hurdles in Florida, and the state’s unique right to privacy would be significantly narrowed, under a proposal that was advanced by a key committee of the Constitution Revision Commission on Thursday.

Under Proposal 22, approved Thursday by a 4-3 vote of the CRC Declaration of Rights Committee, the existing privacy right is narrowed from giving every person the right “to be let alone and free from governmental intrusion into the person’s private life” to restricting government intrusion to only “information and the disclosure of that information.”

The CRC is the 37-member board that has the power to put amendments directly on the November 2018 ballot.

If approved by the full commission in March, the measure would appear before voters.

If adopted, parental consent and 24-hour waiting periods on abortion — laws thrown out by Florida courts in recent years because of the current privacy clause — could be restored, said John Stemberger, an Orlando attorney and sponsor of the measure who has been a longtime anti-abortion advocate.

“It doesn’t invalidate all the existing case law, but new statutes would have to be interpreted under the new provisions,” he said.

Abortion rights groups argue that the proposal is aimed directly at restricting legal abortion in Florida because it would no longer protect personal autonomy and decision-making.

Other groups — from the American Civil Liberties Union, the AntiDefamation League and the League of Women Voters — warn that the measure also opens the door to other forms of government intrusion. They warn that governments could allow anything from drone surveillance and mandatory genetic testing for certain occupations to limiting parental rights to home-school educations for their children.

“This proposal is not about safeguarding informational privacy,” said Kara Gross, legislative counsel for ACLU of Florida. “That is already protected in Florida’s privacy clause. This proposal is about stripping away existing privacy rights.”

If the full commission puts the measure on the ballot and voters approve it by the required 60 percent, Stemberger argues that abortion would still be a protected right in Florida — but the Legislature could pass restrictions.