1. Expanding Access to Women’s Health Care. SB 747, instructing the state to apply for a federal Medicaid waiver that would expand access to family planning and preventative health care for low income women, was passed out of the Senate Health & Human Services committee to the Senate by a vote of 5-2, with 2 members absent, on March 22, 2005. A pro-choice vote (“P”) was a vote for this bill.

2. Defunding Comprehensive Health Care Providers. Senator Deuell (R- Greenville) offered Floor Amendment 1 to SB 747 that would exclude organizations that “perform or promote elective abortions”, or affiliates of such organizations, from receiving funding under the waiver. The amendment also prohibits waiver providers from counseling, educating or providing patients with emergency contraception. The amendment passed the Senate with a vote of 20-10 on April 6, 2005. A pro-choice vote (“P”) was a vote against this amendment.

3. Emergency Contraception is Contraception. Senator Shapleigh (D- El Paso) offered an Amendment 2 to Floor Amendment 1 to SB 747. This amendment would have removed the language that prevents women participating in this program from being counseled, educated, or provided with emergency contraception. Senator Deuell made a motion to table this amendment. The amendment was tabled with a vote of 18-12 on April 6, 2005. A pro-choice vote (“P”) was a vote against tabling this amendment.

4. Funding Fake Clinics. The Senate Finance committee voted on a budget “rider” by Senator Williams (R- The Woodlands) to SB 1, the state budget. The rider shifts $5 million in Title 20 (TANF) family planning funds from the Department of State Health Services to the Health and Human Services Commission. The funds are designated solely for nonprofit agencies that “promote childbirth” i.e. “crisis pregnancy centers” that do not provide medical services and are not regulated by the state. It was adopted by a vote of 9-4, with 2 members absent on March 9, 2005. A pro-choice vote (“P”) was a vote against this rider.

5. Anti-Choice Amendments. SB 419, reauthorizing the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners, first passed the Senate by a voice vote on April 26, 2005. The House added two amendments banning third trimester abortions when the fetus is viable unless the abortion is necessary to prevent the woman’s death, the fetus has a severe irreversible brain impairment, or to prevent the woman from suffering imminent, severe, and irreversible brain damage or paralysis, and requiring minors to obtain parental consent for an abortion (instead of the existing requirement that they notify a parent). The Senate initially refused to concur in the amendments and appointed conferees on May 25, 2005, but discharged the conferees on May 26, 2005, and concurred in the House amendments by record vote of 23-7. A pro-choice vote (P) was a vote against this bill. This bill was signed by Governor Rick Perry on June 6, 2005 and took effect on September 1, 2005.

+ Special note about Texas Senate Votes on Parental Consent for Minors Seeking Abortion. SB 1150, requiring minors to obtain parental consent for an abortion, passed the Senate State Affairs Committee by a vote of 6-0, with 2 members absent, on May 12, 2005. This bill requires teenagers to obtain either parental consent or a judicial bypass from a court, as opposed to current Texas law which requires teenagers to notify a parent before seeking an abortion. A pro-choice vote (P) was a vote against this bill. SB 1150 passed the Texas Senate by a record vote of 25-5 on May 18, 2005. A pro-choice vote (P) was a vote against this bill and is indicated by a “+”.

NARAL Pro-Choice Texas was opposed to SB 1150 due to concerns that it would create new barriers to safety for abused pregnant teenagers, and force them back into dangerous homes and situations. Parental notice and consent laws are unnecessary for the majority of Texas teenagers who are from stable and loving families in which a minor feels safe telling their parents about an unintended pregnancy.

Parental consent and notification laws are both ineffective and dangerous for minors from dysfunctional or abusive home situations. Such laws haven proven to also increase health risks for teenagers by delaying treatment. The abortion procedure is safest early in the first trimester, imposing delays by requiring either parental consent or a time consuming judicial bypass procedure increases the gestational age at which the procedure occurs, the difficulty of finding a provider, and the risks of the procedure itself.

However, the practical effects of this new law did not mark a significant shift in current policy. In 2005, Texas already had a parental notification law in effect for minors seeking an abortion. SB 1150 simply changed the requirement for a teenager seeking an abortion from notifying a parent, to seeking consent from a parent. For the majority of Texas teens who already consult with their parent when facing an unintended pregnancy, this new law has no effect. For teenagers from abusive or dysfunctional homes, they already face the difficult challenge of seeking a judicial bypass, or tracking down an absent parent or confronting an abusive parent, in order to notify them that they’re seeking an abortion.

We regret that the lead sponsors of this legislation did not use their valuable time and energy promoting legislation to reduce Texas’ high teen pregnancy rate or improving the lives of teens in tragic home situations.

In contrast, HB 1212 considered by the Texas House in 2005 would have required parental consent but also would have increased hurdles in the courtroom for a teenager seeking a judicial bypass from the consent requirement. HB 1212 would have raised both the burden of proof on the minor and the standard for what constitutes “abuse” --threatening the safety of abused pregnant teenagers.

NARAL Pro-Choice Texas is extremely grateful to the Senators who opposed this bill and voted against its passage in the Senate. A pro-choice vote against this bill is marked as a “+” to indicate the pro-choice position taken by senators voting against this new law. A vote against SB 1150 is not included in the overall 2005 Texas Senate voting record ratings but is indicated as a “+.”