New York ? The abortion bill most likely to become federal law this year would affect a relatively small number of pregnant teens, yet its effect on them could be dramatic — sharply reducing the options for girls in many states who dread telling their parents of their plight.

Supporters and opponents each offer vivid worst-case scenarios in debating the bill, which was included last week in the Senate Republicans’ priority list. It would outlaw transporting a minor across state lines to obtain an abortion in order to evade parental consent or notification laws in the girl’s home state.

The bill’s advocates evoke the image of a girl being impregnated by an abusive older man who then drives them to an out-of-state abortion clinic so the girl’s parents and the authorities won’t find out about a relationship that might have been illegal because of age differences.

Opponents of the bill say it would criminalize the well-meaning acts of an aunt, older sister or other confidante who assist a girl terrified of being beaten or evicted from home if her parents learned of the pregnancy.

“You’re talking about girls who really need support — let them use whatever support they have,” said Shawn Towey of the National Network of Abortion Funds. “This bill is going to have a chilling effect on people who are just there to help.”

Titled the Child Custody Protection Act, and carrying a sentence of up to one year in prison, the bill has bounced around Congress for years, winning House approval three times but never reaching a vote on the Senate floor. Only now — after making the Senate GOP’s Top 10 priority list — do supporters and foes think its passage is probable.

Advocates on both sides expect support for the bill from majority Republicans, perhaps joined by some Democrats. Some doubt Democratic leaders will wage an all-out fight against it.

“Politically, it would be very high risk for the Senate Democrats to filibuster this bill,” said Douglas Johnson, legislative director of the National Right to Life Committee. “Polls show that about 80 percent of Americans support the concept of parental notification.”

Thirty-two states — including Kansas — have parental-involvement laws in force, though the National Right to Life Committee considers eight of the laws ineffectual.