1. The citizens of Alaska voted to enact a law requiring notification of parents before girls under 18 years of age can obtain an abortion.

LifeNews.com reported that, using the right of initiative and referendum, nearly 50,000 people in the state signed the petition to get the pro-life proposal on the ballot.

The Anchorage Daily Newsstated that the opponents, Alaskans Against Government Mandates, funded heavily by Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), spent more than $800,000 trying to defeat the referendum.

The sponsor of the proposal, Alaskans for Parental Rights, spent only about $150,000. Their largest contribution was from the Knights of Columbus.

The vote on the proposed law was held in conjunction with the August 24 primary elections. With all precincts counted, the Secretary of State's office reported the results:
FOR 74,786 (55.4%)
AGAINST 60,196 (44.6%)

Chris Charbonneau, chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest, said the measure will be a severe restriction on abortion. She attributed the outcome to a heavy turnout in the Republican Primary, especially for Joe Miller, a Tea Party candidate running for the Senate.

Interestingly, the Washington Post's Aaron Blake believes Miller, who was leading Senator Lisa Murkowski in late returns, may have benefited from the large turnout of Christian voters for the parental notification proposal.

The National Right to Life Committee says that this is the 30th state parental involvement statute.

2. The Catholic Bishops have strongly endorsed HR 5939, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act, by Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) and 166 cosponsors, to prevent federal funds from being used for elective abortions.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, Archbishop of Galveston--Houston and Chairman of the Bishops Committee on Pro-Life Activities, has written a letter to all members of the House, which states in part:

"H.R. 5939 will write into permanent law a policy on which there has been strong popular and congressional agreement for over 35 years: The federal government should not use taxpayers' money to support and promote elective abortion…

"However, the Hyde amendment is only a rider to the annual Labor/HHS appropriations bill; and while it has been maintained essentially intact by Congress over the last 35 years, it only governs funds appropriated under that particular act…

"While Congress's policy has been remarkably consistent for decades, implementation of that policy in practice has been piecemeal and sometimes sadly inadequate…

"H.R. 5939 would also codify the Hyde/Weldon amendment that…has ensured that federal agencies, and state and local governments receiving federal funds, do not discriminate against health care providers because they do not perform or provide abortions…No hospital, doctor, or nurse should be forced to stop providing much-needed legitimate health care because they cannot in conscience participate in destroying a developing human life."