Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) said she ould oppose any effort to repeal the Parental Notice of Abortion Act. | File Photo
Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) said she ould oppose any effort to repeal the Parental Notice of Abortion Act. | File Photo
A state senator said she would vote against repealing a 25-year-old law about abortion notifications sent to parents.
Sen. Jil Tracy (R-Quincy) opposes an effort from the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois to rally support in the state Legislature to repeal the 1995 law requiring parents to receive at least 48-hours notification before their minor child gets an abortion.
The legislation is known as the Parental Notice of Abortion Act (PNA).
"The current law simply requires notification, not consent and repealing it would be a slap in the face to parents who want to offer care, support and counseling for their children," Tracy said in an April 21 Facebook post. "Should this legislation make it to the Senate floor, I will be opposing it."
The law does allow minors who don't want to notify their parents about getting an abortion to seek a "judicial bypass" where they must go before a judge to prove they're able to decide for themselves and that telling a parent wouldn't be in their best interest.
The ACLU recently released a report conducted by the organization and the Human Rights Watch that found many children who chose to seek the "judicial bypass" route did so out of fear of abuse or alienation.
The Illinois Times reported the study was based on feedback from 200 girls who went through the "judicial bypass" process who stated key factors in going that route were fear of being cutting off financially or kicked out of the house, forced to have the baby, or ruining family relationships.
Illinois is one of 37 states that require girls under the age of 18 to tell a parent before an abortion is performed.
Alerts Sign-up