The Oklahoma Senate on Thursday passed a bill that seeks to ban all abortions in the state and would be enforced by private citizens. Now it’s headed to the desk of Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt.
Driving the news: This comes on the same day that the Oklahoma State House of Representatives passed another piece of legislation, also inspired by the restrictive Texas law, that would ban abortions in the state after the sixth week of pregnancy.
- The authors of the near-total ban did not immediately respond to Axios’ requests for comment on how the two Texas-style laws would coexist in the state.
Why it matters: The near-total ban encourages private citizens to sue anyone suspected of helping a person get an abortion. If signed, it would become the most restrictive abortion law in the US.
- The legislation would take effect as soon as it becomes law. Stitt has previously indicated that she will sign any anti-abortion bill that comes across his desk.
Details: the oklahoma measure, HB 4327, encourages private citizens to sue anyone who “performs or induces” an abortion, as well as anyone who “assists or abets in the performance” of an abortion. People can also be sued if they “[intend] participate” in the above actions but have not yet done so.
- Citizens would receive at least $10,000 if they successfully sue an abortion provider.
- The bill also says that whoever is sued cannot say they believe the bill is “unconstitutional” as a defense in a court of law.
- A person cannot be sued if an abortion was provided “at the direction of federal agencies, contractors, or employees performing duties under federal law.”
- Unlike the Texas ban, this legislation has exceptions for rape and incest, as long as the police are reported. It also allows exceptions if the abortion is necessary to save the life of a pregnant person.
It is worth noting: Before final approval, the Oklahoma State Senate added a amendment to the bill that says no state court has jurisdiction to consider counterclaims brought to stop lawsuits against abortion providers or those who have helped people access the procedure.
- Oklahoma State Sen. Julie Daniels (R), the bill’s author, said while debating the legislation that the “beauty of this bill” is that even if a lawsuit is not filed, the threat of legal action will eliminate access to abortion in clinics in the state.
the intrigue: The passage comes after the Governor of Oklahoma signed another bill, SB 612which makes it a felony to provide an abortion.
- The difference between HB 4327 and SB 612 is that the latter is not modeled after Texas law and is not enforced through private lawsuits. Instead, it says a person who performs an abortion would face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $100,000.
- Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor said the two laws would complement each other, emphasizing that laws enforced by private citizens “have not been struck down by the courts.”
What they are saying: “In case it wasn’t clear: Anti-abortion lawmakers are hell-bent on banning abortion in Oklahoma as much as possible, as soon as possible,” said Emily Wales, interim president of Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes, during a rally in place in early April.
- “They have refused to listen to Oklahomans even as we gather in the Capitol building and chant ‘ban Oklahoma’ outside their offices. Well, we will not stop holding them accountable for taking away our freedoms.”
Zoom out: The US Supreme Court is poised to reconsider Roe v. Wade and a decision is expected in June.
Do not forget: Oklahoma is one of 13 states that has a “trigger law,” which is an abortion ban that would go into effect immediately if the Supreme Court overturns its precedent altogether.
- state legislators passed a bill on Tuesday that it would modify the language of its current trigger law to say that abortions would be banned in the state if the court “in whole or in part overrules” Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
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Reference-www.axios.com