One month from tomorrow, Californians will vote for the third time on a measure requiring doctors to notify a parent or responsible adult before a minor girl can get an abortion. In 2005 and 2006, Golden Staters defeated such measures.

But a new Field Poll shows voters narrowly supporting this year’s Prop 4. And legal scholars say that if the measure passes, it will be virtually bulletproof in the courts. The San Jose Mercury News reports:

Among other things, the law includes provisions that have prompted courts to uphold nearly identical laws in other states, such as exceptions for medical emergencies and an outlet for a teen worried about abuse at home to get a judge’s permission to go forward without notifying a parent.

“It would be a very tough initiative to challenge on federal constitutional grounds,” said Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the University of California at Irvine law school.

Prop 4 would amend the California constitution, making federal courts the only available venue for legal challenges. But federal precedent is stacked high in favor of parental involvement laws, experts say. That means voters who don’t think parents should be involved when a minor girl elects a potentially dangerous surgical procedure will this year have to win at the ballot box and not the courts.

What a concept.