But the lawmakers who want a new state law to ban partial-birth abortion say their bill mirrors the language of a federal law banning the procedure that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court this year.

"We 're not reinventing the wheel here, " said Senate Minority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau. "I think the bill is solid. "

Fitzgerald and Reps. Jim Ott, R-Mequon, and Tony Staskunas, D-West Allis, sent a letter to lawmakers Thursday asking them to co-sponsor the bill.

Chris Taylor, public policy director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin, said lawmakers are engaging in a "political game. It 's wasting time and money trying to gain headlines by repeating existing federal law. "

Thirty-one states have laws that ban partial birth abortion, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a New York- and Washington, D.C.-based abortion rights think tank that studies reproductive health issues. But enforcement of 17 laws, including Wisconsin 's, has been blocked by a court, and another seven are effectively unenforceable, the group said.

No state has enacted a new law since the 2007 federal court ruling, said Elizabeth Nash, a public policy associate for the institute.

State law

Wisconsin 's 1998 law passed when the Senate was controlled by Democrats and the Assembly was controlled by Republicans. Tommy Thompson, a Republican, was governor.

But it 's unclear whether the new bill will pass the Legislature. Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch, R-West Salem, supports the bill and will likely bring it to a floor vote, a spokesman said. Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker, D-Schofield, couldn 't be reached for comment.

Fitzgerald said he tried to secure Democratic co-sponsors in the Senate. Whether the senate holds a hearing and a vote on the bill will depend on "the amount of momentum that comes down to the Democratic senators that are, quote unquote, pro-life. "

Party control of the Legislature is the same as in 1997, but now the governor, Jim Doyle, is a Democrat. As attorney general, Doyle defended the law when it was challenged in court.

A spokeswoman for Doyle didn 't return messages seeking comment Thursday.

No health exception

The bill would make it a felony to perform a partial-birth abortion, which is defined as an abortion in which "the entire fetal head is outside the body of the mother (or) any part of the fetal truck past the navel is outside the body of the mother. "

It provides an exception for procedures that are necessary to save the life of a mother and allows doctors charged with a violation to seek a hearing before the state medical examining board to determine if that was the case.

The bill also lets married fathers and the parents of minor girls sue doctors in certain cases where a the procedure is performed.

Taylor said her group would fight the bill because it doesn 't provide an exception to allow the procedure to protect a woman 's health. She said even if a pregnant woman 's life isn 't in danger, a partial-birth abortion should be allowed if a woman has a serious health complication during pregnancy that calls for an abortion. About 15 percent of all pregnancies involve complications, she said.

"This is what the politicians are saying to these families: Women 's health doesn 't matter, " Taylor said. "Legislators are not in a position to tell doctors what procedures are acceptable to protect a women 's health. "

Taylor said the group has not opposed partial-birth abortion bans that include an exclusion related to protecting the health of women.

Barbara Lyons, executive director of Wisconsin Right to Life, said the bill is needed in case the federal abortion ban is changed or wiped out by Congress. The procedure is opposed by most people, she said.

"I think most people realize what a really gruesome procedure this is, " Lyons said.

Abortion ban repeal

Also Thursday, two Dane County legislators said they would seek to repeal the state 's criminal abortion ban, the 1849 law that was rendered unconstitutional since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973. The law has not been enforced since at least then.

Rep. Terese Berceau, D-Madison and Sen. Mark Miller, D-Monona, said in a press release they want to repeal the state 's criminal abortion ban.

"No woman should have to go to prison or have her own life threatened because of archaic laws that discriminate against women 's rights, " Miller said in the release.

They said a repeal is necessary in the event Roe v. Wade is overturned. That would make abortion a crime in Wisconsin, even in the cases of rape or incest, they said.

Under the law, doctors who perform abortions could face 15 years in prison and a $50,000 fine.

Partial-birth  abortion

What: A group of lawmakers is pushing for a new state ban on   "partial-birth abortions,  " a procedure in which   "the entire fetal head is outside the body of the mother  " when the abortion is performed.

Opponents say: The move is a political stunt and not needed because the procedure is prohibited by federal law.

Supporters say: The law is needed to give state and local officials the ability to prosecute violations.