PIERRE - A measure to require doctors to ask pregnant women if they want to see sonograms before they have abortions now goes to Gov. Mike Rounds.

Rep. Don Van Etten, R-Rapid City, who is a retired physician, said the bill simply would ensure that pregnant women make informed decisions.

"It's a personal family decision," said Rep. Deb Peters, R-Hartford, who opposed the bill. "We don't need to be checking one more box."

Rep. Roger Hunt, R-Brandon, said pregnant women didn't have to look at the sonogram, but he said they should know it is available. "This is a surgical procedure that ends the life of an unborn child in the womb," he said.

Today the South Dakota legislature passed SB88, a bill that will require doctors to ask women if they want to see an ultrasound prior to any abortion procedure. SB88 has numerous reporting requirements that could prove onerous to many physicians in the state.

Kate Looby, director of Planned Parenthood in South Dakota, issued a written statement within minutes of the vote. "We are in favor of women receiving all of the information they need to make private health care decisions," Looby said. "We're opposed to politicians like Roger Hunt practicing medicine."

Linda Schauer, state director of Concerned Women for America, also issued a written statement. "The sonogram image, known as the 'window to the womb,' allows a woman to be fully informed about the development of her unborn child and make the4 best decision about the baby's future," she said.

The Senate already had passed the measure, and because it was not amended in the House the bill now goes to Gov. Rounds.