Key Senate vote on abortion bill delayed
Democrats, activists fear court fight
TALLAHASSEE – Senate Democrats on Tuesday managed to delay a key vote on a bill requiring parental consent for minors seeking an abortion, a measure abortion rights activists believe is a “Trojan horse” to overturn Florida’s broad protections for abortion rights.
Republican state Sen. Dennis Baxley, a supporter of the bill, bemoaned what he called deliberate tactics by Democrats to stall the measure.
“What we’ve witnessed is delay of game,” said Baxley, R-Ocala.
Republicans fended off 15 amendments from Democrats, but time ran out in the 90-minute meeting before a vote could be called. Senate rules prevented the committee from extending the meeting.
State Sen. Gayle Harrell, chair of the Senate Health Policy Committee, vowed the bill would return for a vote at its next meeting.
“We’re going to fully vet the issue again, and I will have it on the next agenda,” said Harrell, R-Stuart. “We will have adequate time.”
Democrats and abortion rights activists see the bill (SB 404) as an attempt by Republicans to strip away abortion rights in Florida. Its path in the Senate is vital to its chances of passing when the Legislature convenes in January.
The bill passed the House earlier this year but failed to make it to the Senate floor, but Senate President Bill Galvano has suggested it could progress farther this year. The House version of the bill is already set for a floor vote.
Florida has more expansive privacy rights in its Constitution than other states, and courts have interpreted that provision to strike down abortion restriction laws in the past. The Florida Supreme Court already struck down a similar law requiring parental approval for abortion in 1989.
But Gov. Ron DeSantis has remade the court, appointing three new members shortly after taking office. He replaced three liberal justices forced to retire because of constitutional age limits with three conservatives, installing a 6-1 conservative majority on the bench.
“Passing this bill is just the first step to chipping away at Roe v. Wade,” said Michelle Stern, president of the Florida State University chapter of Planned Parenthood Generation Action during a news conference before the hearing.
But supporters of the bill dispute that, claiming it’s only aimed at involving parents in the discussion of an underage girl’s decision of whether to carry a pregnancy to term.
“I’ve seen those calling this a Trojan horse; this is a parental rights issue,” Baxley said. “I can’t imagine any parent thinking they should be bypassed when they’re responsible. You cannot get a tattoo without parental consent, you can’t get your ears pierced without parental consent, you can’t go on a school trip without parental consent.”
Florida voters approved a measure in 2004 requiring parents to be notified when a minor is getting an abortion. Minors, however, can seek a waiver through the courts to get around that requirement.
The bill would allow for the same process for parental approval, with judges having the ability to grant waivers to pregnant teens who have been physically or sexually abused or are deemed sufficiently mature to make the decision on their own.
Opponents of the bill, though, bashed the judicial waiver process as overly burdensome for a young girl, especially for those who are abused, victims of incest or in the foster care system.
Two of the amendments sought by Democrats would have required each county clerk to conduct training and have available data on the judicial waiver process. Sen. Lauren Book, D-Plantation, who offered the amendments, said she called each county clerk and only a handful had working knowledge of the waiver process.
But Sen. Kelli Stargel, RLakeland, said the current waiver system was sufficient to provide exemptions in cases of incest or abuse from within the family.
“That’s the whole purpose of the judicial bypass,” Stargel said. “If the child feels that they would not be able to safely have this discussion at home they have the opportunity to go to the courts.”