Florida governor signs abortion bill requiring parental consent for minors

Florida Gov. Ron De Santis (R) on Tuesday signed a bill that requires anyone under 18 to receive parental consent for abortions.

The bill, which was passed by the legislature earlier this year and goes into effect on July 1, would prohibit doctors from performing the procedure on minors unless they first get a notarized letter from a parent or guardian. Under previous law, people under the age of 18 needed to inform a parent or legal guardian before undergoing the procedure.

Doctors who perform abortions without parental consent will face third-degree felony penalties.

A minor is able to petition their corresponding circuit court and receive a judicial waiver of parental consent. 

“Parents need to know what’s going on with their kids while they’re a minor living in the house,” Sen. Kelli Stargel (R), the lawmaker who introduced the bill, told WUFT.

Planned Parenthood of Florida said that the law passed Tuesday could put minors experiencing abuse in danger.

“Even as other states like Massachusetts and Illinois are realizing the damage these forced parental consent laws are doing and working to reverse them, Florida is moving full speed to endanger young people who, in many cases, have experienced abuse at the hands of their own parents or guardians,” the organization said in a statement.

Gov. DeSantis has just signed the forced parental consent bill into law, making Florida a more dangerous place for young people and giving extremist lawmakers a legal path to force an all-out abortion ban. Read our full statement: https://t.co/rg25KXXz8k pic.twitter.com/DL0hTgzXXW

— FLPlannedParenthood (@FAPPA) June 30, 2020