By: Jessica Priest
“We are saddened to learn of the passing of former State Representative Jodie Laubenberg” said Amy O’Donnell, spokesperson for Texas Alliance for Life. “As the author of HB 2 in 2013, she worked tirelessly to protect mothers and unborn children. Texas Alliance for Life was honored to work alongside her in crafting, advancing, and defending this historic legislation.”
By: Maria Mendez, Colleen Deguzman, Terri Langford
The Texas Alliance for Life earlier this week expressed support for revisions to HB 7, including those meant to protect women’s privacy and cap financial rewards for people who are not related to the person who had or sought an abortion.
“It is already illegal to traffic abortion drugs in Texas under the Human Life Protection Act, and our priority remains enforcement of that and other laws,” said Amy O’Donnell, communications director for Texas Alliance for Life. “The revised version of HB 7 provides another tool against illegal abortion-by-mail while including vital protections for women.”
By: J. David Goodman
The bill initially divided anti-abortion activists. Some were concerned that it would invite “bounty hunters” to file suits aimed at “profiting from the death of an unborn child to whom they are entirely unconnected,” said Joe Pojman, the executive director of the Texas Alliance for Life, in testimony at a House hearing on Friday.
But Mr. Pojman’s group backed the final House version of the legislation after new language was inserted saying that unrelated plaintiffs would only be able to keep $10,000 — with the remaining $90,000 going to a charity of the plaintiff’s choice, as long as the person filing the lawsuit did not have a direct connection or a financial stake in it. The revised bill also does not allow suits to be brought by domestic abusers or by men who committed sexual assault resulting in a pregnancy.
“We are united,” Amy O’Donnell, a spokeswoman for Texas Alliance for Life, said of the anti-abortion advocacy groups.
By: Taylor Goldenstein
Joe Pojman, the outgoing executive director of Texas Alliance for Life, had testified Friday that the previous version of the bill is “likely unconstitutional, ineffective, and will damage the pro-life reputation of this state.”
“Do we want bounty hunters from anywhere in the country or beyond filing lawsuits in our state, seeking judgments of $100,000 or more? Vigilantes profiting from the death of an unborn child to whom they are entirely unconnected?” Pojman said. “Members, this, in our view, is not a pro-life policy.”
But the group’s spokesperson, Amy O’Donnell, said on Monday that its legal counsel believes the updated version is “constitutionally sound” because it not only shields pregnant women from the lawsuits but also allows them to be plaintiffs.
By: Sally Edwards
The Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 33, which prohibits local governments from using taxpayer dollars on abortion-related expenses, just months after Austin’s fund was established. The bill, which supporters say help standardize the state’s policies to reflect Texan’s pro-life beliefs, effectively abolishes Austin’s fund.
“Texas has made it clear through our elected officials that we’re a pro-life state and taxpayer funding for abortion travel or logistics violates both the law and the will of the people,” said Amy O’Donnell, a spokesperson for pro-life nonprofit Texas Alliance for Life.