ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 9, 1996 TAG: 9603110042
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: GENERAL ASSEMBLY NOTEBOOK
Virginians got a lesson in lawmaking this week with the rapidly changing fortunes of the parental notification bill.
Both the House of Delegates and state Senate are on record in favor of a bill that would require a parent or legal guardian to be notified in most cases before an abortion is performed on anyone under age 18.
But the bill died when it became entangled in a rules fight over whether the parental notification provisions had been improperly amended to another bill.
The snarl put some legislators on both sides of the issue - favoring parental notification but voting to kill it because they believe the way the provision had been tacked onto another bill sets a bad precedent.
Here's a run-down on how Western Virginia legislators voted on the key steps along the way:
HOW THEY VOTED
The Feb. 13 House of Delegates vote on the parental notification bill. "yes" vote is a vote in favor of requiring parental notification. The bill passed 71-27.
Ward Armstrong, D-Henry County Yes
Tommy Baker, R-Pulaski County Yes
Richard Cranwell, D-Vinton Yes
Creigh Deeds, D-Warm Springs Yes
Allen Dudley, R-Rocky Mount Yes
Morgan Griffith, R-Salem Yes
Tom Jackson, D-Hillsville Yes
Lacey Putney, I-Bedford Yes
Roscoe Reynolds, D-Henry County Yes
Jim Shuler, D-Blacksburg No
Vic Thomas, D-Roanoke Yes
Clifton "Chip" Woodrum, D-Roanoke No
From there, the parental notification bill went on to the Senate, where it was killed in committee. On Thursday, supporters attempted to revive the measure on the floor by amending it onto another bill. When Lt. Gov. Don Beyer ruled the attempt out of order, a procedural vote on whether to uphold Beyer's ruling followed.
HOW THEY VOTED
On the procedural vote that cleared the way for a substantive vote on parental notification. A "yes" vote here is effectively a vote to keep parental notification from coming to a vote on the floor.
John Edwards, D-Roanoke Yes
Virgil Goode, D-Rocky Mount No
Emmett Hanger, R-Augusta County No
Madison Marye, D-Shawsville Yes
Steve Newman, R-Lynchburg No
Jack Reasor, D-Bluefield Yes
Malfourd "Bo" Trumbo, R-Fincastle Not voting
William Wampler Jr., R-Bristol No
Trumbo backed parental notification, but also said the attempt to amend it onto another bill stretched legislative rules too far for his liking. Had he voted "yes" in favor of a strict reading of the rules, the procedural vote would have tied 20-20, and Beyer would have cast the tie-breaker to uphold his own ruling. So, Trumbo simply left the floor. That left the vote 20-19 to overturn Beyer's ruling, and the parental notification bill was cleared for a straight up-and-down vote on its merits.
HOW THEY VOTED
The Senate vote on whether to require parental notification. The bill passed 25-15.
Edwards No
Goode Yes
Hanger Yes
Marye No
Newman Yes
Reasor Yes
Trumbo Yes
Wampler Yes
Because the Senate had now added parental notification to another bill, the measure had to go back to the House. Even though the House had previously supported a parental notification bill, Speaker Thomas Moss, D-Norfolk, echoed Beyer's original ruling. He declared that the Senate version had been improperly adopted and couldn't be considered by the House. His ruling was challenged, setting up a procedural vote on whether to consider the Senate version.
HOW THEY VOTED
On the House vote to uphold the Speaker's ruling that the parental notification amendment had been improperly added to the Senate bill and couldn't be considered. A "yes" vote is effectively a vote to kill the parental notification bill on technical grounds. The House voted 67-32 to uphold the Speaker's ruling.
Armstrong Yes
Baker Yes
Cranwell Yes
Deeds Yes
Dudley No
Griffith No
Jackson Yes
Putney Yes
Reynolds No
Shuler Yes
Thomas Yes
Woodrum Yes
LENGTH: Long : 152 lines KEYWORDS: GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1996by CNB