HARRISBURG – Gov. Tom Wolf has signed into law House Bill 1984, legislation authored by Pennsylvania House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre/Mifflin) that stands up for rape victims and their families.
It removes the requirement of having a surrogate parent lined up in order to terminate the rights of a perpetrator of rape or sexual assault that resulted in the birth of a child.
The bill passed the Pennsylvania General Assembly unanimously and was supported by the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape.
On the bill being signed into law, Benninghoff made the following statement:
“This bill takes a long-overdue stand for victims and their families by removing the need to have a surrogate parent lined up before the parental rights of a rape or sexual assault perpetrator can be terminated.
“Neither survivors of rape and sexual assault nor their families should be revictimized by outdated laws that favor perpetrators of these terrible acts, and I am proud to have taken the lead on closing this particularly ridiculous legal loophole for the benefit of survivors and their children.
“I thank Gov. Wolf for signing this important bill into law, my colleagues in the General Assembly for their unanimous support of this legislation, and the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape for its advocacy throughout the legislative process.”