COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Senate passed a bill Wednesday that would require the burial or cremation of fetal remains after a surgical abortion.

Under Senate Bill 27, which passed 24-7, people who violate the requirement would face a first-degree misdemeanor. Facilities that perform abortions, including workers at public hospitals, could be subject to the charges.

Women seeking abortions would have to express in writing, through a form the Ohio Department of Health develops, whether she wants the fetal remains to be buried or cremated. Minors seeking an abortion would first have to obtain consent from a parent, guardian or court. SB 27 states if a woman declines to “exercise the rights under the bill,” then the abortion facility would have to determine whether to cremate or bury the remains.

The pregnant woman wouldn’t be charged under the bill.

Abortion providers would have to keep documents about the woman’s or her parent’s choice of cremation or burial. They would have to demonstrate the date and method of disposition of the remains. The facility would have to maintain a written list of businesses that cremate or bury remains, the bill states.

Abortion facilities, including public hospitals, would have to foot the bill for the burial or cremation, except if a woman wants a fetus buried at a certain location that’s different from the one provided by the abortion provider. Then she would have to pay for it, according to the bill.

A fiscal analysis of the bill states that public hospitals would incur minimal costs to comply with the bill. A specific dollar amount wasn’t estimated.

The Ohio General Assembly has previously seen similar legislation but it has never become law. It’s passed the Senate twice.

SB 27 now heads to the House.

Sen. Joe Uecker, a Cincinnati-area Republican who is sponsoring the bill said cremation and burial protects “the dignity of human life.” The fetuses would be treated the same as a relative, he said.

The Department of Health has rules for the disposition of fetal remains, but Uecker said they’re not specific enough.

“It does not restrict a woman’s right to an abortion,” he said.

Sen. Nickie Antonio, a Lakewood Democrat, said the bill could be shaming.

“I’m very concerned about the additional bureaucracy, paperwork and documentation that this creates for women at a very stressful time, the women who exercise their constitutional right to privacy as they access abortion medical procedures,” she said.