This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2006, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Utah's law requiring doctors to notify a girl's parents before she has an abortion has been untouched for more than 30 years - unchallenged by abortion rights advocates and untinkered with by state legislators.
The statute, apparently, works.
And normally, Ogden dairy farmer Kerry Gibson wouldn't create a conflict where one doesn't exist. But the freshman Republican lawmaker has a 10-year-oldĀ daughter, and that has everything to do with his decision to sponsor legislation requiring parental consent before a minor can have an abortion in Utah.
"It would be hard to remove a sliver without a parent's consent," Gibson says. "What is it about abortion that rises above that" legal requirement?
Utah's 1974 parental notification law requires doctors to notify a girl's parents before ending her pregnancy.
Gibson's House Bill 85 would change the state law to require doctors to get at least one parent's permission 24 hours before the procedure.
Twenty-one states have parental consent laws and 13 simply require giving notice to parents, according to the nonprofit Guttmacher Institute.
Doctors could proceed without parental consent in cases where a girl under 18 years old fears abuse if her parents discover her pregnancy or is pregnant as the result of incest. The legislation would allow a teen to petition a judge, rather than her parent, for permission. And Gibson's bill provides an exception in an emergency or if a "medical condition exists that poses a significant threat of harm to the life or health of the minor."
Gibson decided to sponsor his bill after reading about a parent who was unable to get information about a child's treatment because of medical privacy laws. Twenty-eight Republican House members - all facing re-election in November - have signed on as co-sponsors.
"This is a parental rights issue," Gibson says. "I'm responsible for anything my child does underage - even to the point of being responsible for the bill. It's critical parents give their consent to this."
Planned Parenthood Director Karrie Galloway wonders why Gibson is meddling with a law that already works. She estimates 95 percent of Utah girls seeking abortions already come to clinics with their parents. Two years ago, 195 girls had abortions, according to the most recent statistics available from the Utah Department of Health. Of those, 24 were younger than 15 and 171 were 15 to 17-years-old. Most Utah clinics currently notify parents through registered mail.
"It's been working pretty darn well in Utah. Parents do get notified," Galloway says. "Providers are doing nothing to circumvent the law."
Galloway figures lawmakers want to force mothers or fathers to make the heartbreaking decision for their child. While many parents might be satisfied simply getting notification of their daughter's abortion, Galloway says, forcing parents to consent to the procedure is another thing. Many more parents could balk. Galloway calls it "government interference in the family."
"Who are our legislators to say how a parent should react in a familial crisis?" Galloway asks.
As a practical matter, Galloway questioned why Gibson's bill did not request any funding for the judicial bypass system it would set up - including legal representation for the girls.
Galloway was not ready to say whether Planned Parenthood would challenge Gibson's law if legislators and Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. sign off.
"It's a very carefully crafted document," Galloway said. "It seems they've written it according to everything that's come through the courts in recent years. Apparently, they just think they need to kick it up a notch and require consent."
The sponsor hopes to avoid litigation - and the potential cost to taxpayers. He says his bill incorporates all legal and health exceptions required by the U.S. Supreme Court. In some respects, his legislation bring's Utah's 30-year-old law in line with other state and federal laws, removing a requirement that doctors notify a woman's husband and adding a process for girls to appeal to a judge for permission. Utah's statute is the only one in the country that does not provide for a "judicial bypass."
"I wrote this bill specifically with the intention of making sure it passed constitutional muster," Gibson says. "I've done everything possible to make sure that it won't be challenged."