Sacramento, Calif. ? Heated debate in the Republican presidential race over child vaccinations also is playing out in California as Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown considers whether to a sign a bill allowing children as young as 12 to get vaccinated against sexually transmitted diseases without their parents’ consent.

Religious leaders, pro-family organizations and GOP lawmakers have warned the change would erode the rights of parents to be involved in their children’s medical decisions. Supporters say the legislation is needed to keep up with new prevention treatments and help slow the spread of STDs among minors.

The bill passed the California Legislature along mostly party lines and now is on Brown’s desk. He has until Oct. 9 to act on AB499, and has not signaled his intent.

Currently, California minors are allowed to seek diagnosis and treatment for STDs such as the human papillomavirus, known as HPV, without parental consent but cannot get vaccinated without their parents’ approval. HPV is the leading cause of cervical cancer.

“I don’t think we should be playing Russian roulette with kids’ lives,” said Assemblywoman Toni Atkins, a Democrat from San Diego who authored the legislation.

Opponents say the push for inoculation by medical officers and women’s health advocates tramples on parents’ rights. Just as minors cannot get a tattoo or piercing without parental approval under California law, opponents say parents should be involved in a child’s medical care, whether it’s treatment for a migraine or sexually transmitted disease.

“Our children need the knowledge and wisdom of their parents in order to make complicated medical decisions,” wrote Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez in an online newsletter. “This legislation would leave our children to make these decisions without the benefit of their parents’ wisdom.”

Although the California bill was introduced back in February, vaccinating minors became a hot national topic recently when Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann attacked Texas Gov. Rick Perry for issuing a 2007 executive order mandating the HPV vaccine for young girls.

That mandate was overturned by Texas lawmakers, but Perry said during a GOP debate that supporting the vaccinations means supporting life.

HPV is the most common sexually transmitted disease. According to the bill’s author, HPV has become the world’s second leading cause of cancer deaths among women. It was blamed for more than 400 deaths in California in 2008, the latest year for which statistics are available.

Two vaccines are available. One is licensed as Gardasil by Merck and the other is Cervarix, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline. They are most effective if given before a person becomes sexually active.

If Brown signs into law, minors also would be able to get other STD prevention treatments, including new medicines that help prevent HIV infection if given within 72 hours of exposure.