- The Utah Legislature considered allowing pregnant women to use disabled parking spaces on Wednesday.
- Rep. Trevor Lee's proposal aims to help pregnant women and address fertility rates.
- Concerns include potential ADA violations and reduced access for disabled individuals.
SALT LAKE CITY — A proposal at the Utah Legislature would allow pregnant women to use parking spaces reserved for people with disabilities.
Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton, presented HB173 on Wednesday afternoon to the House Transportation Committee, which ultimately decided not to move forward with the proposal for now. But it could come back before the 45-day legislative session is over.
Lee said his bill allowing pregnant women to obtain a temporary disabled parking placard is a way to help them, and perhaps even improve the state's falling fertility rate.
"I believe we need to keep doing more policies in our state that help incentivize and help those who want to have big families and grow and expand," Lee said. "We definitely have a fertility crisis in this state, and it's something that is a simple bill but can make a good little difference to show we support families that want to grow and have those kids."
Lee said the temporary pass would only be available while a woman is pregnant and would become invalid after that. But some lawmakers expressed concern about whether this would violate the Americans with Disabilities Act and take away parking spaces from those who need it.
"My concern is not to discriminate against women who are pregnant or who choose to be pregnant multiple times," said House Minority Leader Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake City. "My concern is those stalls are there for people who really have trouble walking or need that space to do their shopping or business."
Andrew Riggle, who works as the public policy advocate at the Disability Law Center and uses a power wheelchair, echoed that.
"I know how hard it can be to find accessible spaces firsthand," Riggle said, noting women can already get temporary parking placards if she has a condition during pregnancy that qualifies as a disability. "This proposal is unnecessary."
Florida recently enacted a similar law allowing pregnant women to use disabled parking spaces, leading to more than 8,000 permits being issued, according to News Service of Florida. That law was challenged in court, but a federal judge has dismissed that challenge, the news outlet reported.
Ultimately, lawmakers on the Utah House committee unanimously voted to hold the bill so Lee can work on it. He told the committee he was interested in finding some "middle ground" on the issue.
The legislative session ends on March 6.
