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Taking Back Territory in 2011
Twenty-two bills. That's how many pro-family, CAP-supported laws the Arizona legislature has passed over the past two years. It brings the total number of CAP-supported bills to 84. Now, thanks to the unprecedented 2010 elections that swept in a two-thirds majority of family-friendly legislators in both the Arizona House and Senate, we have a unique opportunity to propose legislation to take back territory for Arizona families in the areas of life, marriage and family, and religious liberty.
That's why we've set forth one of the most ambitious legislative agendas in CAP's history. We've captured the moment and aim to recover territory, once thought lost for good. Here are the bills we'll be supporting this session.
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**Bills without numbers have not yet been introduced.
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| Protecting Life |
- HB 2416/SB 1246: Mother's Health & Safety; Ultrasound Provision - Updates health and safety standards for abortion clinics; provides women with the opportunity to view an ultrasound image before an abortion is performed; bans the use of telemedicine for abortions.
- HB 2384/SB 1265: Abortion Funding Prohibitions - Closes loopholes in Arizona law that allow taxpayer dollars to directly or indirectly fund abortions and abortion training.
- SCR 1017: Pregnancy Care Centers Resolution - Acknowledges the profound positive impact of Arizona's pregnancy care centers that provide help for those with crisis pregnancies.
- SB 1250: Donor-Conceived Medical History Act - Requires infertility clinics to keep the medical history of egg and sperm donors for 99 years in order to provide donor-conceived children with a complete medical history.
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| Strengthening Marriages and Families |
- SB 1187: Divorce Reform - Improves the parenting education classes required for divorcing parents to include the impact divorce has on adults and children; allows couples to ask for additional time to reconcile before a divorce is finalized.
- SB 1188: Adoption; Marital Preference - Gives children in foster care a chance to have a mom and a dad by ensuring that married couples are given primary consideration as adoptive parents.
- Educational Opportunities Act - Allows Arizona taxpayers to make additional contributions for scholarships that enable children to attend the schools that their parents believe are best for them; clarifies statutes governing school tuition organizations.
- Arizona Empowerment Accounts - Enables parents of students with special needs to select the education and educational services they deem best for their children.
- Parents Rights - Prohibits Arizona schools from showing R-rated movies to minors without first receiving written consent from their parents. Provide for recognition of parents' rights in charter schools.
- SB 1152: Homeschool Definition - Defines a homeschool as a nonpublic school.
- HB 2411: Child Prostitution Sentencing - Strengthens Arizona law to allow harsher punishment for predators who engage in child prostitution.
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Affirming Religious Liberty
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- HB 2565: University Religious Liberty Act - Protects freedom of religion and freedom of speech for university students and university student groups.
- Rights of Conscience - Protects professionals from legal persecution for practicing their faith.
- Church Political Committee - Safeguards churches from being forced to register as a political committee when they speak out on issues or ballot measures.
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Judicial Reform
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- Judicial Selection Ballot Measure - Improve Arizona's judicial selection process to allow for more accountability and transparency.
- Judicial Retention - Provide more information to voters regarding judges up for retention election.
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Be sure to join me for a CAP Family Issues Briefing in the coming weeks in:
- Tucson on Feb 11 from noon-1:30 p.m.
- Phoenix on Feb 18 from noon-1:30 p.m.
- Prescott on Feb 25 from noon-1:30 p.m.
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