SACRAMENTO — Californians might have a sense of deja vu when they vote in November on Proposition 4, a ballot measure that would require doctors to notify a parent or other adult family member before an abortion is performed on a minor.
Similar measures were put before the voters in 2005 and 2006 and lost by slim margins both times.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Friday, September 26, 2008 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 2 inches; 60 words Type of Material: Correction
Abortion measure: A headline in Wednesday's California section on an article about Proposition 4 said "Voters again face abortion consent bid," which inaccurately characterized the measure. Proposition 4 would bar abortion for unemancipated minors until 48 hours after a doctor had notified the minor's parent or legal guardian, but it would not require the consent of the parent or guardian.
Polls show that the most recent proposal is still struggling to gain support from a majority of voters, but backers such as winemaker Don Sebastiani and publisher Jim Holman say they are determined to accomplish this year what they didn't previously. And they have changed the measure's text to address some criticisms of those earlier proposals.
Holman, who publishes the San Diego Reader, an alternative newspaper, has put about $5 million of his own money into the three initiatives, including more than $1.5 million of the $2.3 million raised this year.
In explanation, Holman says he has four daughters. He is also a veteran of sidewalk counseling outside abortion clinics.
Opposition to the measure, organized as the "Campaign for Teen Safety," is led by Planned Parenthood and California chapters of the American Civil Liberties Union. The campaign has raised more than $3 million so far.
Opponents argue that parental notification laws can endanger young women who become pregnant.
"They don't increase family communication," ACLU attorney Maggie Crosby said during a legislative hearing last week. "What they do is say for teens in unhappy homes that they must either navigate a court system, travel out of state or turn in desperation to illegal . . . and dangerous abortion procedures."
The measure's supporters point out that, in California, parental notification is required before minors are allowed to do many things that do not involve a medical procedure.
"It's insane," Sebastiani said. "I'm completely mystified that you need to get a mom's permission to get an aspirin at school, you need to get a mom's permission to go to a tanning salon, but you can go in and have your baby aborted [without notification]. Something is wrong."
Proposition 4 would amend the state Constitution to bar abortion for unemancipated minors until 48 hours after a physician had notified the minor's parent or legal guardian. The measure would also require the minor to give consent.
