Legislature moves closer to abortion-ban agreement

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Legislature moves closer to abortion-ban agreement

"This is as good as we will get this session," committee chair says

By Natalie Chandler, The Clarion-Ledger, (Jackson, Mississippi), February 23, 2007

A bill that would ban most abortions in Mississippi could be finalized as early as next week since a key Senate chairman said he probably will agree to changes the House made Thursday.

"My tendency is to say, this is as good as we will get this session, so let's take the offer and move on," Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee Chairman Alan Nunnelee, R-Tupelo, said after the House approved the bill.

The apparent compromise would end an election-year push that appeared to be over when House Public Health and Human Services Committee Chairman Steve Holland, D-Plantersville, emphatically said two weeks ago he was not going to consider the legislation.

But Holland relented during a committee meeting Thursday, citing pressure from his fellow legislators and "about 800 and something phone calls from the general public. Phones have been jammed for 10 days."

After the bill passed out of Holland's committee, the House voted 97-16, and with little debate, to approve legislation that combines three abortion-related bills recently cleared in the Senate.

Senate Bill 2391 would ban most abortions if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, which allows abortion. Exceptions would be made in cases of rape or if the pregnant woman's life is in danger.

House lawmakers voted against an amendment that would have included an exception for incest, because "legal counsel thinks that rape and incest are one and the same," Holland said.

The omission drew initial rejection from abortion-rights advocates. "Rape and incest are not the same thing," Felicia Brown Williams, vice president of public affairs for Planned Parenthood of Alabama, said. "We'll have to take a closer look at that."

If the bill becomes law and the federal ruling is overturned, anyone performing abortions in Mississippi would face one to 10 years in prison.

However, other abortion restrictions would go into effect July 1. Doctors would be required to give a pregnant woman the chance to look at a sonogram and listen to a fetal heartbeat before an abortion. Also, young women seeking abortions without parental consent would be required to get court approval.

Representatives voted to tweak the Senate's version of that provision. A judge would now need "clear and convincing evidence" that a minor is mature enough to choose abortion and find the procedure to be in her best interest.

Holland said the Senate version would have allowed "a total restriction" on abortion if a judge ruled against a minor's request. "It would have put the state in major litigation against the U.S. Supreme Court that is 5-4 right now on Roe v. Wade," he said. "There's no reason to meet an 18-wheeler head-on if you know that 18-wheeler's gonna smush you."

Although Nunnelee said he is "comfortable with the Senate language," he plans to consult with his committee's attorneys before formally recommending senators accept the changes.

He said he plans to make a decision by early next week, and a Senate vote could soon follow. If senators disagree, the bill would head to conference between the two chambers.

"The Senate version would have guaranteed Mississippi to challenge Roe v. Wade," he said. "The House version puts us on the sidelines. My overall assessment is, this is as good as we're going to be able to get out of the House leadership this year."

Williams called the legislation "misplaced priorities. If lawmakers are truly concerned about preventing unintended pregnancy in Mississippi they should work with Planned Parenthood on prevention by increasing access to birth control and medically accurate sex education."

But Tanya Britton, president of Pro-Life Mississippi, said, "The people in Mississippi recognize the dignity and worth of an unborn child. They recognize abortion is bad, not just for a mother but for families and for society."

Abortion Bill
Senate Bill 2391 would ban most abortions if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, which allows abortion. Exceptions would be made in cases of rape or if a pregnant woman’s life is in danger.

Additionally, the legislation requires doctors to give pregnant women the chance to look at a sonogram and listen to a fetal heartbeat before an abortion. Also, young women seeking abortions without parental consent would be required to get court approval

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