Five Unorthodox Pro-Life Bills Advancing In State Legislatures

Conservative News DailyApril 7, 2021

The Biden administration is adamantly in favor of abortion.

Within the first days of his inauguration, President Biden overturned the Mexico City Policy and other pro-life measures supported by President Trump. Biden also withdrew the United States from the Geneva Consensus Declaration — a statement from several countries asserting that “there is no international right to abortion, nor any international obligation on the part of States to finance or facilitate abortion.”

His ultimate intention is to make Roe v. Wade — the 1973 Supreme Court opinion that justified the legality of abortion across the United States — the “law of the land.”

State lawmakers are now launching their responses. As pro-life nonprofit Live Action details, Republican-led states typically increase their fervor in passing pro-life laws under Democratic presidents.

Rather than the typical late-term abortion bans and “heartbeat bills,” some states are opting for more unorthodox approaches for protecting the unborn. Here are five examples.

Complete and total ban — Arizona

Republican state legislators in Arizona are pursuing a bill to abolish and criminalize abortion.

The Equal Opportunity for Life Act — unveiled by state Rep. Walt Blackman on the 48th anniversary of Roe v. Wade — would define an “unborn child in the womb at any state of development” as a “person” under state law. In addition to opening the door for state officials to prosecute mothers for murder, the bill would ban the use of taxpayer dollars for abortion.

“The question now is whether Americans, regardless of age, size or abilities, will be afforded an equal opportunity to enjoy the inalienable right to life,” explained Rep. Blackman, stating that his bill ensures “full and equal protection for Arizona citizens, both before and after birth.”

House Majority Leader Ben Toma (R-AZ) and House Majority Whip Leo Biasiucci (R-AZ) are co-sponsoring the legislation.

Pro-abortion activists in Arizona immediately denounced the bill.

“It is no coincidence that on the 48th anniversary of Roe v. Wade and two days after the inauguration of a pro-reproductive rights administration that far-right conservatives of the Arizona Legislature are seeking to violate our constitution and further stigmatize people who have abortions,” asserted Murphy Bannerman, communications manager of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona.

Other states — including Oklahoma and Indiana — are pursuing similar outright bans on abortion.

Pregnancy support from dads — Utah

State lawmakers in Utah approved a bill that would require biological fathers to offer financial support to mothers during their pregnancies.

The bill — which was signed by Gov. Spencer Cox (R-UT) in March — mandates that a father pay for half of a mother’s insurance premiums and pregnancy-related medical costs, including the hospital birth of the child.

“Oftentimes there’s this battle between pro-life and pro-choice where some of the pro-life positions really turn into a perception that it’s just anti-abortion,” explained state Rep. Brady Brammer (R-UT) to the House Judiciary Committee. “I kind of got sick of those things and I thought what could we do that’s really a pro-life thing? … and so that’s where this bill came from.”

As Sen. Dan McCay (R-UT) added, the legislation is an attempt “to try and bring some equity to the funding of pregnancies and share in that burden and [to recognize] the important role that the mother and the father play in the pregnancy.”

Required burial rites — Ohio

An Ohio bill would “impose requirements on the final disposition of fetal remains from surgical abortions.”

Under the Unborn Child Dignity Act, mothers would have to indicate whether they would prefer a cremation or burial for their aborted children. The bill also clarifies that “if a woman is carrying more than one zygote, blastocyte, embryo, or fetus, such as in the incidence of twins or triplets,” each unborn child is “a separate product of human conception” that will receive a distinct burial.

Ohio Right to Life and former state Sen. Joe Uecker (R-OH) are leading efforts to pass the bill.

“Whether pro-life or pro-choice, everyone should be able to agree that the bodies of babies should never be thrown into the trash,” said Ohio Right to Life in a statement. “The unborn victims of abortion deserve the same basic decency that we afford to all humans: a dignified burial.”

“Although we look forward to the day when we no longer have to lay to rest the broken bodies of Ohio’s abortion victims, we are proud to say that our state has taken another step towards recognizing not only the humanity of the unborn, but of ourselves as well,” the group added.

Fathers’ veto — Tennessee

Tennessee lawmakers are working to pass a bill that would allow fathers to protect their unborn children from abortion.

The legislation “permits a person to petition a court for an injunction to prohibit a woman who is pregnant with the person’s unborn child from obtaining an abortion.”

As the bill summary explains, both parties would provide evidence regarding the unborn baby’s parentage. If a man proves that he is the biological father of the child and that “there is a reasonable probability that the respondent will seek an abortion prior to giving birth to the unborn child,” the court will grant an injunction — a “court order requiring a person to do or cease doing a specific action” — preventing the mother from terminating the pregnancy.

If the mother violates the injunction, “the court may hold the respondent in civil or criminal contempt and punish the respondent in accordance with the law.”

As bill sponsor state Sen. Mark Pody (R-TN) explained to Fox 17 News Nashville, if a man “can prove to the courts that he is the father, the biological father, then he has rights to what’s going on with his son or daughter.”

Pro-life license plates — Idaho

Idaho will allow residents to purchase a license plate designed as a fundraiser for pro-life causes.

Gov. Brad Little (R-ID) signed a law approving the “Choose Life” specialty license plates, which residents will be able to purchase for $35 each.

Choose Life Idaho — the organization that designed the license plates and will receive a portion of the sales — works to “raise funds to support life affirming pregnancy resource centers, to help pregnant women choose life for their babies, and to encourage adoption as a positive choice for women with unplanned pregnancies.”

As the legislation states, Choose Life Idaho will receive a $22 share of each new plate purchase, as well as $12 of each $25 renewal fee. The remainder of the proceeds will be deposited into the state highway fund.

The group has raised over $28 million for pregnancy resource centers and adoption services since 2000.

The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

The Daily Wire is one of America’s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a member.