Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act Reintroduced in Congress
In the ongoing controversy over abortion, conservatives are reintroducing a bill to require parental notification for minor girls seeking abortions.
The Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act (CIANA) has been reintroduced in the 109th Congress, seeking to protect underage women by prohibiting the act of taking minors across state borders to get an abortion without parental notification.
Over 30 states have already passed legislation requiring minors to notify their parents or legal guardian before getting an abortion. Supporters of the CIANA bill assert that this requirement and the protection it affords, has been undermined by the transportation of minor girls to states which do not require parental notification. The CIANA bill would make this action a federal crime.
Concerned Women for America (CWA) issued a statement yesterday in support of the bill. Senior Policy Director Wendy Wright commented, "Abortion clinics place advertisements for their services in neighboring states that have parental notification requirements, indicating 'no parental notification required.' This reveals a conscious effort by conniving adults to violate state laws and to interfere with a parent's ability to protect their daughter."
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“The Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act affirms that not only do parents have a right to be informed about their minor daughter’s decision to abort her baby, but parental involvement is in the girl’s best interest,” said Wright.
Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Florida) reintroduced the bill to Congress yesterday, where it is expected to pass the House sometime this year. The bill has already been passed by the House in 1998, 1999, and 2002.
However, greater opposition exists in the Senate, where the bill is known as the Child Custody Protection Act. The bill has been placed as one of the Senate’s Top Ten priorities for the start of the new session.
