COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Republic-controlled state Senate has approved a bill along party lines that would require Ohio abortion clinics to either bury or cremate fetal remains.
The Columbus Dispatch reports the legislation sponsored by Republican Sen. Joe Uecker, of Miami Township, would make violations of the law a first-degree misdemeanor. Uecker says he wants to “promote and honor the dignity of the unborn.”
The Senate previously passed a similar bill along party lines the Republican-controlled House never acted on. Current Ohio law says fetal remains must be disposed of humanely.
Democratic senators and abortion rights groups criticized the bill as another attempt to impede women from seeking legal abortions.
A federal judge in September struck down a similar provision enacted by Indiana’s legislature while Vice President Mike Pence was that state’s governor.
