State Senator Margaret Dayton has been working since the summer on her bill that would ban so-called gender-selection abortion in the state of Utah. Now, as the session is finally beginning, she’s decided that the ban may not be necessary at all.

However, just because she is giving up on her ban doesn’t mean she’s just going to leave everything in the state as it is. Instead, she will propose as bill that will provide more tracking of abortions, such as who is receiving them, how many are done, and at what gestational age. 

Via the Daily Herald:

“I had requests from several legislators that we get all the data and keep it in state and then we will address other issues,” Dayton explained.

Dayton said the data is collected on a federal level but there are concerns that the reports will not produce the numbers Utah is seeking. She went on to explain that this bill will allow the state to gather the numbers to help policymakers when creating abortion legislation.

“Right now the focus is on the information,” she said.

Sen. Dayton has amended SB 60 to require “the race and ethnicity of the women on whom the abortions were performed.” Perhaps a race-based abortion ban is still on her radar?