COLUMBUS — Senate action on the “Heartbeat” bill was “postponed indefinitely” by Senate President Tom Niehaus, R-New Richmond, on Wednesday after backers of the bill presented him with 20 proposed changes.

Niehaus said it was “outrageous” that bill supporters presented him with four pages of changes at the “11th” hour.

House Bill 125, also known as the “Heartbeat” bill, would ban abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected. This could be as early as five or six weeks — before some women know they are pregnant — and would be the toughest anti-abortion restriction in the country.

Niehaus said backers had been pressing for action on the bill since it was passed by the House in June and had assured the Senate that it was “vetted” in the House and needed no changes.

Niehaus got the proposed changes Tuesday.

However, Janet Porter, president of Faith2Action, a prime mover behind the bill, said the changes were presented at the request of senators and were “clarifications” and technical changes.

“He’s the president of the Senate, and the president of the Senate can do anything he wants to do,” Porter said.

She said she was optimistic that the Senate would act, but nothing new is expected to happen until the next year.

Rep. Lynn Wachtmann, R-Napoleon, the sponsor of the bill, also said he was optimistic and that he planned to speak with senators about any concerns.

The bill has divided abortion opponents, and James Bopp Jr., general counsel to the National Right to Life Committee, testified against it Tuesday. He said in his prepared testimony that he believes the ban on abortions after a heartbeat would be unconstitutional under current court rulings and would not stand a U.S. Supreme Court challenge.

He said that the “informed consent” requirement in the bill — that a woman be informed that a heartbeat was detected — would be useful legislation that would be constitutional.

Porter, however, rejected Bopp’s argument and said taking the ban out of the bill would “take the heart out of the Heartbeat” bill.

Ohio Right to Life does not support the bill for reasons similar to those outlined by Bopp, but Porter and supporters say now is the time to mount a challenge.

Marshal Pitchford, chairman of the Ohio Right to Life board of trustees, said in a prepared statement that he looked forward to working with “Heartbeat” supporters to “identify a reasonable compromise.”

Kellie Copeland, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio, said in a prepared statement that she was “happy” with Niehaus’ decision but upset about other anti-abortion legislation approved this year.

“This has been a dark year for the women of Ohio,” Copeland said.