Florida House ready to take up parental consent for abortion

Rep. Erin Grall. Image via Florida House Media.

A House panel on Tuesday cleared a bill requiring parental consent before a minor seeks an abortion.

Currently, the requirement is just parental notification.

The House Health & Human Services Committee reported favorably on partisan lines a bill (HB 265) filed by Republican Rep. Erin Grall of Vero Beach.

Since the committee was the sole stop for the bill, it is now ready for a House floor vote when the Legislature convenes in January.

With multiple members of the committee as co-sponsors of the bill, and with a heavy GOP lean on the panel and in the House, that outcome was no surprise.

This bill has been through the House before. If passed this year and signed into law, it would reinstate a provision from the 1980s that required consent.

The state’s Supreme Court struck that down in 2003, but a revived law would test the conservative bona fides of Gov. Ron DeSantis‘ reconfigured Supreme Court.

Rep. Kamia Brown, one of the few Democrats on the committee, questioned why such a major bill had just one committee stop.

Chairman Ray Rodrigues, an Estero Republican, refused to entertain that question, part of a pattern where he sought to limit debate to more narrowly-defined issues of the measure under consideration.

Another Democrat, Nicholas Duran, questioned whether the bill was constitutional, in light of the Supreme Court decision.

Grall said defects from the 1980s law had been corrected, including a requirement to appoint counsel for a minor and a recording of the court proceeding.

As well, an exception for medical emergencies is in the current legislation, which requires a “good faith medical judgement” and timely notification via certified mail.

“If a physician intentionally and recklessly tried to move forward under the auspices of medical emergency,” Grall added, then felony penalties could apply.

If a young woman seeking an abortion lacks a parent or guardian, however, there is recourse: A judicial waiver, tailored for those in the foster care system.

That judicial waiver struck Democrats as a flawed process, with objections raised on behalf of those who may be undocumented or otherwise lack recourse. Grall was not persuaded by that argument.

Though the outcome was certain, a cavalcade of comment from interested parties preceded the vote. Of the 68 commenters, there was an almost even split of support and opposition.

The ACLU and League of Women Voters panned the bill, while representatives of Christian groups lauded the legislation.

While the House bill is all but passed, the Senate bill (SB 404) has three committee stops, a heavier lift there for sponsor Kelli Stargel, a Lakeland Republican.