Wichita, Kan., Mar 19, 2009 / 04:35 am
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius is being urged to sign new state legislation that would require Kansas abortionists to offer women an ultrasound image or heartbeat record of their unborn child before an abortion procedure. One pro-life advocate said the governor’s refusal to sign the bill would “extinguish” hopes she would work to reduce abortions.
On Tuesday the Kansas Senate voted in favor of the bill by 36 to 2. The “Woman’s Right to Know Act,” S.B. 238, would also require clinics to post signs saying that coerced abortions are illegal.
Both the Senate and the House votes on the bill gave it more than the two-thirds majority support necessary to override a veto, the Kansas City Star reports. Once the legislation is enrolled, Gov. Sebelius will have ten days to sign the law, veto it or allow it to become law by inaction.
Brian Burch, President of the Chicago-based Catholic organization Fidelis, urged the governor to sign the legislation before she attends her confirmation hearings concerning her nomination to become U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services.