State constitution – REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS ALERTS

19 Nov

Judge strikes down Wyoming’s abortion laws, saying they violate state constitution

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion laws, Abortion Legislation, Health care, State constitution, United Sates, Wyoming

“A Wyoming judge ruled Monday that two laws restricting and banning abortion in the state violate its constitution, making the procedure legal up until fetal viability for the time being. Teton County District Judge Melissa Owens imposed an injunction on the pair of state laws in a ruling that said they ran afoul of the state constitution, which says every person has a right to personal autonomy in making medical decisions….”

04 Apr

Arizona organizers say they have more than enough signatures for an abortion ballot measure

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion ballot measure, Abortion Rights, Arizona, enshrining, signatures, State constitution, United States

"A group hoping to put an amendment enshrining the right to abortion in Arizona's constitution said Tuesday that they had gathered enough signatures for the measure to qualify for the ballot in November. There is a requirement for the collection of 383,923 signatures of support for constitutional amendments in Arizona, and Dawn Penich, communications manager for Arizona for Abortion Access, said they have amassed more than 500,000 signatures already..."

20 Mar

Anti-abortion advocates oppose CT constitutional amendment

MollyLatest News, United StatesAnti-abortion, Connecticut, General Assembly, Reproductive rights, State constitution, United States

"More than 1,500 anti-abortion activists marched on the Connecticut Capitol grounds Wednesday, calling on lawmakers to halt a proposal before the General Assembly that would enshrine reproductive rights in the state’s Constitution. The third annual March for Life drew religious leaders, Catholic school students and other advocates, including state lawmakers from both parties. This year’s gathering comes as abortion rights around the country are being rolled back in some states and expanded in others. Connecticut has extended access to HUSKY for undocumented people seeking abortions and enacted a legal shield to protect doctors who provide abortions, among other protections...."

05 Mar

Reproductive rights up for vote on Maryland’s 2024 ballot

BarbraLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion Rights, Healthcare, legislation, Maryland, State constitution

Reproductive rights up for vote on Maryland's 2024 ballot BALTIMORE - Abortion rights will be on the Maryland ballot in 2024. Abortions are legal in Maryland. However, state lawmakers last year passed an amendment that would enshrine the right to an abortion, and "reproductive freedom," in Maryland's constitution.

29 Jan

Republican legislatures in some states are trying to keep abortion off the ballot

BarbraLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Abortion Rights, legislation, Mississippi, Missouri, State constitution

Legislative efforts in Missouri and Mississippi are attempting to prevent voters from having a say over abortion rights, building on anti-abortion strategies seen in other states, including last year in Ohio. Democrats and abortion rights advocates say the efforts are evidence that Republican lawmakers and abortion opponents are trying to undercut democratic processes meant to give voters a direct role in forming state laws.

25 Jan

Opinion: Help us put abortion rights in the Colorado Constitution

BarbraLatest News, United StatesAbortion Care, Colorado, legislation, Opinion, State constitution

Colorado long been a trailblazer in individual liberties, can guarantee the right to abortion in the state Constitution While Colorado has long been a trailblazer in championing individual liberties, the absence of a constitutional guarantee for the right to abortion leaves a critical gap in our commitment to securing rights. In 2024, we must protect the full range of reproductive health care in Colorado by putting abortion rights into the Colorado Constitution.

23 Jan

Maine Democrats who expanded abortion access now want to enshrine it in the state constitution

MollyLatest News, United StatesAbortion Access, Abortion Rights, Maine, Reproductive healthcare, State constitution, United States

"Maine Gov. Janet Mills and other leading Democrats are pressing to end future legislative debate over abortions by amending the state constitution to enshrine the right to reproductive health care, just six months after lawmakers expanded access to abortions. Maine is seeking to join four other states that have amended their constitutions to protect the right to abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022...."

09 Jan

Arkansas group files third draft of proposed abortion amendment

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Rights, Amendment, Arkansas, Attorney General, legislation, State constitution, Third draft, United States

"Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin will review a third draft of a proposed constitutional amendment that would guarantee a limited right to abortion. Arkansans for Limited Government, a ballot question committee supporting the amendment, submitted the draft Monday after Griffin rejected the second draft last week. Griffin wrote in Thursday’s opinion that the drafters had addressed most of the issues he had with the first iteration of the amendment, which was proposed and rejected in November...."

05 Jan

Arkansas AG rejects second proposed amendment to make abortion a constitutional right

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Rights, Alabama, Amendment, Attorney General, Proposed amendment, State constitution, United States

"A proposed constitutional amendment proposing a limited right to abortion in Arkansas needs further revisions before it can appear on the 2024 statewide ballot, Attorney General Tim Griffin wrote in a Thursday opinion. Griffin rejected a previous version of the proposed amendment in November. The initial proposal said state government entities would not be allowed to “prohibit, penalize, delay or restrict” Arkansans’ access to abortion “within 18 weeks of conception.” Both rejected proposals would have permitted abortion services in cases of rape, incest, a “fatal fetal anomaly” or to protect a pregnant person’s life or health...."

22 Dec

Advocates propose amending Montana Constitution to guarantee abortion rights

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Rights, legislation, Montana, Planned Parenthood, Reproductive rights, State constitution, United States

"If advocates are successful, Montana voters may have a chance next year to decide whether access to abortion should be specifically protected in the state constitution. A proposed constitutional amendment, backed by Planned Parenthood Advocates of Montana, would add language to the Montana Constitution, establishing “a right to make and carry out decisions about one’s own pregnancy, including the right to abortion.”..."

08 Sep

Florida Supreme Court hears arguments in challenge to 15-week abortion ban

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Ban, Florida, State constitution, state rights, State Supreme Court, United States

"The Florida state Supreme Court heard arguments Friday morning in a legal challenge seeking to throw out the state's 15-week abortion ban, claiming it violates the state's constitution. The hearing was part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of Planned Parenthood, the Center for Reproductive Rights and other abortion providers against the state of Florida. In July 2022, a lower state court ruled that the ban violated the state's constitution and it was temporarily suspended. The law went into effect again later that same day when the state appealed the judge's decision. The state Supreme Court…

29 Jul

GOP megadonor pours millions into effort to hinder Ohio abortion amendment

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Ban, Illinois, Megadonor, Ohio, Politics across state lines, State constitution, United States

"New campaign finance records show Illinois Republican megadonor Richard Uihlein is funding the bulk of the campaign aimed at thwarting a constitutional amendment on abortion in Ohio. Ohio is likely the only state this year to have a measure on the ballot to enshrine abortion access into the state constitution, setting up a test case for how the issue may drive voters ahead of the 2024 presidential election. A USA TODAY Network/Suffolk University poll released this week found 58% of Ohioans support a constitutional amendment...."

24 Jul

Ohio abortion clinics continue to help out-of-state patients as bans are put in place

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Ban, Abortion Care, Abortion Rights, Ballot, Healthcare, Ohio, Six-week Abortion Ban, State constitution, United States, Voting

"As groups await legal battles on abortion, as well as hope for a November ballot initiative to include reproduction rights in the Ohio Constitution, abortion clinics are also looking to help surrounding states where bans have taken hold. Indiana has been the most recent state surrounding Ohio to see an abortion ban approved — set to start on August 1 — and with it struggles for Planned Parenthoods in the state to care for patients, even those seeking other reproductive services. While Ohio awaits the state Supreme Court’s decision in a case regarding an indefinite pause to the six-week abortion ban in the state,…

22 Jul

Abortions in Florida topped 38,000 in the first six months of 2023

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Ban, Abortion Rights, Abortions, Florida, Legal battle, State constitution, Statistics, United States

"Amid a legal battle about the future of abortion rights in Florida, more than 38,000 abortions were performed in the state during the first half of 2023, according to a newly posted report on the state Agency for Health Care Administration website. The report, dated July 3, said 38,244 abortions had been performed this year...."

20 Jul

An effort to enshrine abortion rights in Florida’s constitution is more than halfway to its goal

MollyUnited StatesAbortion Rights, Florida, legislation, State constitution, United States

"Abortion rights supporters have collected nearly half a million petition signatures for their campaign to place the issue before voters on the 2024 ballot. ...Gilmore is one of thousands of volunteers collecting signatures for the constitutional amendment proposal. Its title reads: "Amendment to Limit Government Interference with Abortion" and its summary states, "No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider."..."