U.S. state abortion legislation to watch in 2023

[July 21, 2023]  By Gabriella Borter and Sharon Bernstein

(Reuters) - State legislatures are wrestling with how much to restrict or expand abortion access after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year.

Here is a snapshot of pending and passed legislation seeking to restrict or protect access in 2023.

RESTRICTIONS

FLORIDA: Governor Ron DeSantis in April signed a six-week abortion ban, which includes exceptions for rape, incest, human trafficking, and the life and health of the mother. It cannot take effect until the state Supreme Court rules on the constitutionality of the 15-week ban that is currently in place.

IDAHO: Governor Brad Little signed into law a bill in April that makes it illegal to help a minor cross state lines to get an abortion without the permission of a parent or guardian. Offenders would face two to five years in prison. The Republican-led state is currently enforcing a near-total abortion ban, with exceptions for rape, incest or the life of the mother.

IOWA: Republican Governor Kim Reynolds in July signed into law a six-week abortion ban days after lawmakers passed it in a day-long special session. The bill bans abortion as soon as fetal cardiac activity can be detected, before many women know they are pregnant. It makes exceptions for rape, incest and fatal fetal abnormalities and medical emergencies, but not for the age of the pregnant person.

MONTANA: Governor Greg Gianforte in May signed into law several bills limiting abortion access, including one that aims to overturn a 1999 state Supreme Court ruling that found the state constitution protected a right to abortion.

Another new law bans most second trimester abortions by prohibiting a common surgical procedure. A state judge has temporarily blocked the measure while it is challenged in court.

NEBRASKA: Governor Jim Pillen in May signed into law a bill restricting gender-affirming care for minors that was amended to also prohibit abortions for pregnancies beyond 12 weeks. Abortion was formerly legal in the state up to 22 weeks.

NORTH CAROLINA: Republican lawmakers in May overrode Democratic Governor Roy Cooper's veto to enact a law limiting most abortions to the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions for rape, incest, life-limiting fetal anomalies and the life of the mother. Abortion was formerly legal up to 20 weeks in the state. The measure also requires doctors to be present when abortion medication is given and requires those seeking medical abortions to have an in-person consultation with a doctor 72 hours before the procedure.

NORTH DAKOTA: North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum in April signed a bill that bans abortion with exceptions for cases where the mother's life or health are at serious risk. The law, which took immediate effect, also makes exceptions for rape and incest victims, but only during the first six weeks of pregnancy.

SOUTH CAROLINA: A South Carolina judge in May temporarily blocked a new "fetal heartbeat" law that would ban abortions about six weeks into pregnancy, before most people know they are pregnant. The judge granted reproductive rights groups' motion to block the legislation one day after Republican Governor Henry McMaster signed it, ruling that it should be considered by the state Supreme Court before taking effect.

A similar six-week ban passed last year was ruled unconstitutional in a 3-2 decision by the South Carolina Supreme Court in January. One of the justices in the majority has since retired, leaving it unclear how the court will rule on the new measure.

Abortion rights activists and counter protesters protest outside the U.S. Supreme Court on the first anniversary of the court ruling in the Dobbs v Women's Health Organization case, overturning the landmark Roe v Wade abortion decision, in Washington, U.S., June 24, 2023. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo

TEXAS: While abortion is completely banned with very limited exceptions in Texas, Republican state representatives have introduced legislation that would compel internet providers to block websites that supply abortion pills or provide information on how to obtain an abortion.

UTAH: Republican Governor Spencer Cox in March signed legislation to prohibit the licensing of abortion clinics, which abortion rights advocates say would effectively eliminate access in the state. Abortion is currently banned after 18 weeks in Utah.

WYOMING: A state judge in June temporarily blocked a bill that the Republican-led state legislature passed in March banning the use or prescription of medication abortion pills. The bill, which Republican Governor Mark Gordon signed into law, had been due to take effect July 1 but will remain suspended pending the outcome of a lawsuit by healthcare providers in the state.

Abortion is currently legal until viability, about 24 weeks, while a state court is reviewing a challenge to a near-total "trigger" ban, which took effect when Roe v. Wade was overturned.

PROTECTIONS

MISSOURI: Voters in the 2024 election may have the chance to affirm or reject a measure that would insert a right to abortion in the state constitution. The state's supreme court in July ruled that Missouri's Republican attorney general had improperly blocked the initiative by disputing its cost estimate from the state auditor. Abortion rights advocates will still need to gather 100,000 signatures to put it on the ballot.

CALIFORNIA: The Democratic state Senate has approved a bill to protect doctors who prescribe medication abortion pills to patients in other states.

MICHIGAN: Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed legislation in April repealing a 1931 bill that criminalized abortion.

ILLINOIS: Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker in January signed a law protecting abortion providers and out-of-state patients from legal attacks waged by other states.

MINNESOTA: Democratic Governor Tim Walz in January signed legislation passed by the Minnesota legislature's new Democratic majority that codifies abortion rights in state law, as well as a right to contraception and fertility treatment. In April, he also signed into law a bill to shield abortion providers and patients from other states' legal attacks.

OHIO: Abortion rights supporters are trying to collect enough signatures to put a constitutional amendment on the November 2023 ballot that would assert a right to abortion. Abortion is currently legal up to 22 weeks.

(Reporting by Gabriella Borter in Washington and Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, California; Additional reporting by Julia Harte in New York; Editing by Colleen Jenkins, Alistair Bell and Jamie Freed)

[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.  Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.