Abortion bill labeled as priority by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick left pending in Texas House

Texas House committee debates abortion provider bill

The Texas House State Affairs Committee heard testimony Wednesday on a bill that would prevent the use of taxpayer money to aid in finding an abortion provider.

AUSTIN, Texas - Lawmakers failed to advance a bill to the Texas House floor that would block cities and counties from allocating public funds to nonprofits that help women travel out of the state to get abortions.

"Tax dollars should not facilitate travel to another state for an act that is not allowed," Rep. Candy Noble said during Wednesday's State Affairs Committee meeting.

Senate Bill 33 would prevent cities and counties in Texas from allocating public money to help women travel out of the state to get an abortion.

The bill was one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's 40 priority bills for the legislative session.

What they're saying:

Supporters of the bill say the use of taxpayer funds to fund abortion travel is a slight to "pro-life values" and an attempt to circumvent the state's abortion ban.

"I just find it wrong for our taxpayer dollars to be funding the women who we're still counseling in front of the abortion facilities," Paul Kruszewski, who spoke in favor of the bill, said. "They're not facilities anymore, but they're acting as travel agencies."

Kruszewski calls himself a "sidewalk counselor" or an anti-abortion advocate that stands outside of clinics.

He said that the travel is having an impact on their efforts to prevent women from getting abortions in other states.

"We hear from the abortion clinics in New Mexico, especially the Albuquerque area, that when the women arrive there, it's very, very difficult for the sidewalk counselors there to have any impact on the women, because they've taken the step to travel all the way to New Mexico to abort their babies," he said.

Other supporters are worried that the way cities like Austin and San Antonio have found a way around the state's abortion ban might spread to other cities.

"Austin, the city that I live in, has dedicated $400,000 to a reproductive justice fund and has already cut a check of $100,000 from that fund to a group that helps to ship women out of out to states like New Mexico, Colorado and Kansas to receive abortions," Samantha Furnace, from Texas Right to Life, said. "This group pays for and plans flights hotel stays childcare, transportation, even food, anything, except for the abortion itself. And because this group doesn't pay for the abortion or provide the abortion, it's not considered an abortion provider or affiliate, and thus these transactions that make these abortions possible are not expressly prohibited."

The other side:

Opponents claim that passing Senate Bill 33 would worsen health outcomes in the state.

"Texas leads the nation in maternal mortality, in pregnancy sepsis rates, and in infant deaths. We really cannot afford to put any further restrictions on abortion care," Avow Texas Policy Director Yaneth Flores said. "I love Texas so much that I want to stay here, and I want to have my children here, but I also want to have a healthy and safe pregnancy. But right now, I can't."

Rep. Rafael Anchia (D-Dallas) pointed to data from the Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Review Committee that shows mortality rates increased by 33% between 2019 and 2023.

"You can see how our public policy has worsened outcomes in terms of more maternal mortality and morbidity," Anchia said. "You can just see the data, and it screams like a neon sign at you."

What's next:

The State Affairs Committee left the bill pending. That means the bill can be considered again at another time.

Texas abortion ban

Texas law currently prohibits all abortions, including in cases of rape or incest, except in instances to save the life of the mother. Physicians can face up to 99 years in prison and be fined up to $100,000 if they perform an illegal abortion.

Changes to Texas abortion law

Senate Bill 31, or the "Life of the Mother Act," would allow for a doctor to perform an abortion when the patient is facing a "life-threatening" condition. The condition would be one that's capable of causing the patient's death, but the bill states that the patient doesn't need to be in immediate danger for an abortion to be approved.

The bill would require training for doctors that might find themselves needing to make that decision. It would also provide training to attorneys that might represent doctors or facilities.