[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 3]
[House]
[Page 3451]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         PARENTAL NOTIFICATION

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, The New York Times published a front-page 
article earlier this month under the headline ``Scant Drop Seen in 
Abortion Rate if Parents Are Told.'' The story went on to say that laws 
requiring parents to be informed about a daughter's decision to have an 
abortion do not have the effect of reducing abortion rates.
  I would just point out two things about this story, Mr. Speaker. 
First, other studies on the subject disagree with the findings 
published by the Times. Studies done by the Heritage Foundation and the 
Associated Press show significant drops in some States' abortion rates 
after the enactment of parental consent laws, such as 33 percent in 
Virginia and South Dakota and 25 percent in Texas.
  I would also point out that all these statistics cloud the larger 
point of parental consent laws. The laws first and foremost seek to 
involve parents in one of the most important decisions their daughter 
will ever make. Minor girls dealing with a pregnancy desperately need 
their parents' involvement. That is what these laws promote.

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