‘Gay gene’ bill stirs debate in Augusta

AUGUSTA – Legislation seeking to outlaw abortions of “homosexual fetuses” stirred debate in the State House Thursday, although the bill’s sponsor and its detractors did agree on one point:

The bill needn’t become law.

Rep. Brian Duprey, R-Hampden, the sponsor of LD 908, told members of the Judiciary Committee Thursday that his bill, which he called the first of its kind in the nation, would protect unborn babies from being aborted based on their sexual orientation, specifically if they are found to carry an as-yet undiscovered “gay gene.”

“If a parent would be so shallow as to disown their own flesh and blood for solely being gay, then I have no doubt that these parents would easily choose to abort their unborn gay babies,” Duprey testified before the committee. “What a travesty this would be.”

Duprey’s “gay gene” bill recently drew national attention when it became the subject of a spoof on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.”

Both on the show and at Thursday’s hearing, Duprey, a staunch opponent of gay rights, was candid about his intent in submitting the controversial legislation.

During his testimony, Duprey told the committee he thought his bill was “totally unnecessary” because he believed homosexuality was not genetic, but a chosen lifestyle.

Scientists have long debated the presence of a “gay gene,” particularly since 1993, when a research team led by Dean H. Hamer, a geneticist at the National Cancer Institute, located on the X chromosome a gene they believed controlled male homosexuality. Subsequent studies failed to confirm the link.

For the bill’s opponents, it was difficult to decide what was more distasteful about Duprey’s legislation: its premise or its title, “An Act to Protect Homosexuals from Discrimination.”

“This bill will do nothing to protect gays and lesbians from discrimination and trivializes the very real consequences of discrimination based on sexual orientation,” said Kimm Collins, a board member of the gay rights advocacy group Equality Maine. “[It] is frivolous legislation.”

The Legislature recently passed a law – not to be confused with Duprey’s bill – prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation in areas including housing, education and employment. A petition drive led by religious conservative groups is under way to repeal the new law.

LD 908 was one of five bills heard by the Judiciary Committee Thursday dealing with abortion. The bills, all of which sparked measured debate, included attempts to amend reporting procedures, require parental notification and establish a 24-hour waiting period.

Such bills have become commonplace in Augusta. For instance, six times in the past 10 years the Legislature has considered – and rejected – a 24-hour waiting period.

One bill, LD 1479, sponsored by Sen. Paul Davis, R-Sangerville, sought to increase the amount of information reported by health care facilities about the nature of the abortions performed in the state.

The legislation drew support from some religious factions, including the Christian Civic League of Maine.

“After 32 years, the effects of abortions on women still remain ambiguous and confusing because there is no comprehensible data surrounding the potential health risks of this major medical procedure that is performed on women daily,” said Tim Russell, the group’s lobbyist.

But Dr. Dora Anne Mills, the director of the state Bureau of Health, opposed the bill, saying its newly required information – such as why a woman chose an abortion and how it was paid for – raised privacy concerns.

Mills said Maine already does a good job in collecting and reporting abortions records to assess trends in women’s health. In addition, educational efforts and easy access to family planning clinics, she said, have helped cut the number of abortions in the state – as well as its teen abortion rate – in half during the past 15 years.

“The bills before you … would be a giant step in the wrong direction,” Mills said.

The committee will next consider the bills at a work session at 2 p.m. Thursday, May 12.