Senate amends and advances parental notification/consent bill for minors; later tables further action

Senator Peterson introduced First Substitute House Bill 85 to require parental notification and add parental consent for a minor seeking an abortion, and to include judicial bypass provisions. He described notification as a long-standing practice in Utah and said the addition of consent aligns the law with existing court precedent and provides a judicial bypass for health and emergency exceptions.

An early floor amendment clarified informed-consent documentation so that the physician documents that informed consent was obtained and that such documentation be included in the medical record; that amendment was adopted on the floor. Senator McCoy offered a narrowly tailored amendment to allow a judicial bypass of the notification requirement where a judge finds notification would pose a risk to the minor's health or safety; that amendment was debated at length on the floor.

After floor amendments and debate, the Senate recorded a roll-call to read the bill for a third time. The third-reading roll-call showed the bill would be read for final passage (26 yes, 3 no). Later, the Senate approved a motion to table First Substitute House Bill 85 on the third-reading calendar, pausing further action pending additional work or scheduling.

What comes next: The bill was amended on the floor, advanced to third-reading status by roll call, and then tabled on the third-reading calendar for future action.