HARRISBURG — A contentious bill that would place new restrictions on abortions in Pennsylvania passed a key Senate committee along strict partisan lines Monday, despite a threatened veto from Gov. Tom Wolf.
The measure, approved in a 9-5 vote by the Senate Judiciary Committee, would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, except in medical emergencies, instead of 24 weeks under current law. It would also sharply curtail a procedure called dilation and evacuation that is often used in the second trimester of pregnancy.
Proponents of the measure say advances in science have shown that fetuses have registered pain during medical procedures as early as 20 weeks. Opponents counter that there are no peer-reviewed studies backing up that assertion, and that the bill is a thinly disguised attempt to infringe on a woman’s legal right to abortion.
Monday’s vote came after a testy exchange between Republicans and Democrats on the committee about the constitutionality of the legislation, the language used in the bill, and even the gender of the committee members.
Sen. Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery, the panel’s top Democrat, objected to the bill describing dilation and evacuation as “dismemberment abortion,” noting that is not a medically recognized term.
He also said the bill would unduly harm mothers by banning a safe and legal abortion procedure and force women to undergo “more dangerous, less safe method(s),” which he said runs contrary to assertions by the bill’s advocates that they want to protect a woman’s health and safety.
Mr. Leach also said the bill served only “to fulfill a wish list of some special interests.” He did not identify them.
Sen. Lisa Boscolam, D-Lehigh, characterized the bill as “an assault on women’s health.” Before the vote, she predicted that a dearth of women on the committee — she is the only one — was one reason it would pass.
“Decisions are made — painstaking decisions by women and men — that might have to end the pregnancy for the sake of the woman and her health and the family’s health,” Ms. Boscola said.
“Who is anybody in this room to tell a woman what she should do in that critical time?”
She called the bill “an election-year gimmick,” prompting Sen. Stewart J. Greenleaf, R-Montgomery, to cut her off. Mr. Greenleaf said he could make the same argument, but “it wouldn’t be appropriate.”
Ms. Boscola told him she wouldn’t be offended if he did. “I don’t care what people say in this room as long as the press is around and people can hear and see and feel it,” she said.
Fourteen states have enacted laws banning abortions at 20 weeks, according to the Guttmacher Institute, which tracks abortion policies.
Sari Stevens, executive director for Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania, called such restrictions unconstitutional, and said fetal viability is considered to occur at 24 weeks.
Sate Sen. John Eichelberger, R-Blair, said he believed it is the job of legislators “to put parameters in place ... to protect the lives of the babies.”
The bill is “very well thought-out. It’s very balanced,” Mr. Eichelberger said. “I think it’s a good bill in every respect.”
The measure, which has already passed the Republican-controlled House, now heads to the full Senate for a floor vote.
Mr. Wolf has said repeatedly that he intends to veto it.
“This is a bad bill for Pennsylvania and we cannot afford to allow it to go forward,” Mr. Wolf said in a statement Monday.
Jennifer Kocher, spokeswoman for Republicans who hold a majority in the Senate, said Monday that there is no timetable for a vote by the full chamber.
Colt Shaw: shawcolt95@gmail.com or @coltshaw
First Published: July 12, 2016, 4:00 a.m.
