WASHINGTON, D.C., June 22, 2012, (LifeSiteNews.com) – As summer begins to blaze, the nation’s state legislatures are heating up with new legislation to protect the unborn.
Ohio
After a rolling series of Live Action exposés, two state representatives have introduced a bill to ban sex-selective abortions in the state of Ohio. Republicans Cheryl Grossman and Matt Lynch modeled the bill after the federal Prenatal Non-Discrimination Act (PRENDA), which failed to receive the necessary two-thirds vote in the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this month.
Meanwhile, pro-life activists are waiting to see if the Personhood initiative will be on the state ballot in November. Patrick Johnston, the director of Personhood Ohio, has accounted for five percent of the necessary 385,000 signatures but has only counted a fraction of the petitions turned in. Johnson said he needs “a ton” to produce the number of supporters necessary to allow Buckeye voters to weigh in on the issue. He has until the end of the month to turn those signatures in. Similar amendments, which state a child’s life begins at the moment of conception, have been defeated in Mississippi and Colorado.
Texas
Health care providers affiliated with the Texas Women’s Health Program will not be able to be housed in the same building as an abortion provider, if new rules proposed by the Department of State Health Services Council are adopted. As it stands, clients can leave a state-funded health organization, then walk to a nearby office for an abortion. The agency would also prohibit any state-funded agency from sharing employees or volunteers with an abortion facility. The state Health and Human Services Commission must now approve the regulations, which were proposed on June 14.
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New Jersey
The Newark Star-Ledger learned last week that state Democrats are attempting to restore $7.5 million in state family planning funding for Planned Parenthood. Marie Tasy, executive director of New Jersey Right to Life, said the abortion giant is waging “the real ‘War on Women,’ and it’s time these legislators stopped trying to pad the pockets of Planned Parenthood and instead focus on working with the Governor to help bring tax relief to New Jersey’s citizens.” Governor Chris Christie is expected to veto the bills if they reach his desk.
New York
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced he and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn plan to file a legal brief opposing the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). They claim a Big Apple resident had to pay $360,000 in taxes after inheriting a $1.3 million apartment from her same-sex partner, a charge that would not have applied if the federal government recognized their marriage. Bloomberg is an outspoken advocate of same-sex “marriage.” New York state has declined to return the $200,000 in taxes it charged the 83-year-old woman.