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By PAT FORGEY
JUNEAU EMPIRE

Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell has certified a ballot initiative about parental consent for abortion backed by Gov. Sarah Palin, the governor’s office announced today.

That means the Division of Elections has certified a minimum number of signatures, and the Department of Law has approved the initiative petition’s language.

A bill requiring minors to obtain parental consent to receive an abortion stalled in the Alaska Senate during the last session. Palin criticized the failure to bring the bill to a vote and said she’d publicly back other efforts, such as a ballot initiative, to do the same thing.

The Department of Law’s review found the initiative’s language “not clearly unconstitutional,” clearing it for more petition signature gathering, though its language may have constitutional issues.

“The proposed bill is in a grey area,” the Department of Law review found.

The bill before the Legislature was designed to meet the standards set in a 2007 Alaska Supreme Court case, State of Alaska v. Planned Parenthood of Alaska, which found earlier abortion restrictions unconstitutional, said legislative sponsor Rep. John Coghill, R-North Pole.

One of the initiative sponsors was former Lt. Gov. Loren Leman, who served under former Gov. Frank Murkowski, but was defeated for re-election by Palin and Parnell.

The initiative’s other two sponsors are Mia Costello and Kim Hummer-Minnery.

• Contact reporter Pat Forgey at 523-2250 or patrick.forgey@juneauempire.com.