Published: 03.05.2004
By Howard Fischer
CAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES
PHOENIX - The governor vetoed legislation Thursday that would have forced a
24-hour delay between a woman being told the risks of abortion and actually
being able to terminate the pregnancy.
Gov. Janet Napolitano had the legislation on her desk only briefly before sending
the five-paragraph veto letter. She cited various constitutional provisions,
state laws and court rulings.
"SB 1077 represents undue government intrusion into the relationship between
a woman and her doctor, her family, her religious counselor, or whomever else
she wishes to consult in making this most difficult of personal and medical
decisions," the Democratic governor wrote.
Napolitano said current case law already requires a doctor to obtain informed
consent before performing any surgery. And she said written consent for abortion
is required by state regulations.
Napolitano's action, which she had vowed to do during the 2002 gubernatorial
campaign, kills the measure for at least this year. The 18-11 Senate vote and
32-27 margin in the House of Representatives both fall short of the necessary
two-thirds vote for an override.
Kathi Herrod, lobbyist for the Center for Arizona Policy, said the veto shows
"the governor put the profits of the abortion industry ahead of the health
needs of women." She said the fact that the two Planned Parenthood organizations
in the state - the major abortion providers - are nonprofit operations does
not change that view.
The legislation said no abortion could be performed unless a woman were given
certain information at least 24 hours beforehand.
That included the nature of the procedure and the risks and alternatives that
a "reasonable patient would consider material" before deciding whether
to go ahead. The legislation also would have required that women be told the
probable age of the fetus and the medical risks of carrying the child to term.
That information could have been provided by phone so the woman wouldn't have
had to make two trips to a clinic. Only in cases of emergency could the waiting
period have been waived.
Rep. Steve Tully, R-Phoenix, one of the sponsors of the legislation, said the
veto letter contradicts itself. He said the letter states the information is
already provided but it goes on to say that requiring the information would
be an undue burden. "It's got to be one or the other."
Napolitano said she believes the legislation violates state constitutional provisions,
one that guarantees a right to privacy and one saying all privileges of law
apply equally to all.
But Herrod, whose organization spent more than $50,000 on a media campaign to
urge Napolitano to sign the bill, said 30 other states have similar laws, all
withstanding constitutional challenges.
Napolitano, however, cited a 2002 Arizona Supreme Court ruling that said the
state must pay for medically necessary abortions for women who cannot afford
them. That decision was based on rights outlined in the state constitution,
which in some cases are broader than the federal document.
The Governor's Office, which reported earlier this week that calls for signing
were running ahead of requests for veto, said Thursday that it did not have
a final tally. Napolitano made that unnecessary, saying Tuesday any action on
the bill would be based on her own beliefs and not on public sentiment.
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