For Immediate Release: May 13, 2015

Texas Bill Targeting Minors Access to Abortion Fast Tracked

Austin, TXAn omnibus anti-abortion bill targeting teenagers access to abortion is expected to
hit the Texas House floor on Wednesday after being placed on the major state calendar, a fasttrack calendar.
The anti-choice zealots in the Texas Legislature are once again prioritizing restrictions on
abortion access over policies that improve the everyday life of Texans, Heather Busby,
executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, said. This time, the Legislature is playing
politics with abused and neglected teenagers lives.
In Texas, parental consent is required for a minor to get an abortion. If involving a parent is not
possible or puts the teenager in danger, they can get a judges order, called judicial bypass.
HB 3994, by Rep. Geanie Morrison (R-Victoria) would alter the judicial bypass process in
multiple ways, making the process overly burdensome, and, for many teenagers, impossible to
attain. The bill also requires all abortion patients show a government-issued I.D. at the clinic,
which disproportionately affects low-income Texans of all ages.
Busby said the current judicial bypass process works and is a safety net for abused and neglected
teenagers.
When the adults in a teenagers life have failed or abandoned her, the bypass process serves as
a safety net, ensuring the support and guidance of stable adults and protection from further
abuse, Busby said. Rep. Morrisons bill would dismantle this safety net and endanger
vulnerable teenagers.
Delma Limones, an advocate for domestic violence survivors, said she knows how Morrisons
bill would hurt vulnerable teenagers not only from her advocacy experience, but also from
personal experience.
Limones left home at seventeen after she told her mother she was being sexually abused and her
mother responded by threatening to make her face her abuser in person.
I had to leave home for my physical and emotional safety, Limones said. The young people
who need the judicial bypass process have stories like mine; they cannot reach out to their
parents or guardians without being put in danger.
Multiple organizations, including the National Association of Social Workers have spoken out
against Morrisons bill.
Public policies must support a womans authority over her sexual life and reproductive
capacity. Will Francis, Government Relations Director for the National Association of Social
Workers, said. When safety or personal issues require a judicial bypass, a teenager should have
the right to petition the court without any needless restrictions or barriers.
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Contact: Zoey Lichtenheld, zoey@prochoicetexas.org, o: (512) 462-1661, m: (512) 659-8650