ACC calls 2009 Ariz. Legislature ‘the most pro-life session ever’
By Joyce Coronel | July 21, 2009 | The Catholic Sun
Governor Jan Brewer signed into law three bills passed by the Arizona Legislature that would place restrictions on abortions.
After the July 13 signing, Arizona joined dozens of other states that have enacted similar legislation across the nation. Pro-life advocates were jubilant when the news broke.
“We’re very grateful for the strong pro-life stance Governor Brewer has made by signing these very significant pro-life bills,” said Ron Johnson, executive director for the Arizona Catholic Conference, the public policy arm for Arizona’s three Catholic dioceses.
“These actions will protect women, children, parents and the civil rights of health care workers,” Johnson said. “Everyone talks about civil rights, but too often [rights of conscience] are the ones that are forgotten.”
He added that Governor Janet Napolitano had a “perfect record in a bad way — by vetoing every abortion bill we got on her desk” during her six years in office.
“Despite the extraordinary length of the session, and a host of other challenges, the best thing about the 2009 legislative session is that it can be called the most pro-life session ever,” Johnson said.
All three measures restricting abortion were sponsored by Rep. Nancy Barto, R-Dist. 7.
One of the measures, HB 2400, bans the partial-birth abortion procedure, something a federal statute already does. The devil, it seems, is in the details.
“Basically it mirrors the federal ban, but it allows local prosecutors to enforce the provision,” Johnson said. Without the state law, enforcing the federal ban would be nearly impossible.
“We would have to rely on the Obama administration to have the United States Attorney General’s Office bring charges,” Johnson said, adding that such a scenario would be highly unlikely given President Obama’s strong support for abortion rights.
Another bill signed by Governor Brewer, HB 2564, known as the Abortion Consent Act, entails a broad range of restrictions. The new law requires a 24-hour waiting period before obtaining an abortion, requires that physicians must inform women of alternatives to abortion and the risks of undergoing the procedure. It also tightens parental consent requirements by mandating notarized signatures.
In addition to these requirements, HB 2564 specifies that non-physicians may not perform abortions.
The conscience rights of health care providers, including pharmacists, to opt out of providing emergency contraception or RU 48, which induce an abortion, will also be protected by HB 2564.
The governor also signed HB 2616, which preserves the provision of nutrition and fluids to patients with guardians. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Rick Murphy, R-Dist. 9, and termed “Jesse’s Law Part 2,” protects a patient while any legal issues are being resolved in lieu of an advance medical directive.
Mike Phelan, director of the Office of Marriage and Respect Life Issues for the Diocese of Phoenix, said the passage of the new laws demonstrated the Church’s view that the law acts as an important teacher in a culture.
Phelan called the signing of the measures a “powerful teaching from our legislature and governor that unborn human life is precious and that parents, doctors and other medical personnel should have their moral consciences respected.”
