Abortion question one step closer to ballots

Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell certified a parental notification ballot initiative backed by Gov. Sarah Palin, the governor's office announced Thursday.

That means enough of the initiative's petition signatures passed muster with the Division of Elections - 171 of 176 were deemed valid - and the Department of Law approved its language.

A bill requiring minors to obtain parental consent to obtain an abortion stalled in the Alaska Senate during the last session. Palin criticized the failure to bring the bill to a vote and said she'd publicly back other efforts, such as a ballot initiative, to do the same thing.

Originally, the bill would have required parental consent for minors' abortions. This initiative would require only notification in most cases.

Before Alaska voters are asked to decide on it, the initiative's sponsors must collect 32,734 additional signatures of registered voters from around the state to get it on a state ballot.

The Department of Law's review found the initiative's language "not clearly unconstitutional," clearing it for more signature gathering, though its language may have constitutional issues.

"The proposed bill is in a gray area," the Department of Law review found.

The bill before the Legislature was designed to meet the standards set in a 2007 Alaska Supreme Court case, State of Alaska v. Planned Parenthood of Alaska, which found earlier abortion restrictions unconstitutional, said legislative sponsor Rep. John Coghill, R-North Pole.

The initiative includes what's known as "judicial bypass," giving a minor the ability to go to court and get an order allowing an abortion without parental consent.

The Supreme Court's 2007 case was decided by a 3-2 vote and overturned an existing state law because it unconstitutionally took away a minor's right to make her own decisions. It did not find judicial bypass an adequate substitute.

Clover Simon, Alaska vice president for Planned Parenthood, said that remains a legal hurdle the initiative is unlikely to overcome.

"If you think about winter in Alaska, or rural Alaska, or how difficult it is to get access to legal help anytime" the initiative is likely to remain an unconstitutional bar to abortion, she said.

One of the initiative sponsors was former Lt. Gov. Loren Leman, who served under former Gov. Frank Murkowski. They were ousted by Palin and Parnell.

The initiative's other two sponsors are Kim Hummer-Minnery, wife of Jim Minnery of the Alaska Family Council, and Mia Costello.

• Contact reporter Pat Forgey at 523-2250 or patrick.forgey@juneauempire.com.