Bill would enshrine abortion rights in state law
House Bill 432, brought by Rep. Laurie Bishop, D-Livingston, would align Montana’s code with past court rulings and existing constitutional rights that protect private medical choice, the sponsor said during Tuesday’s hearing before the House Judiciary Committee.
“This bill reflects where we are at this moment and is intended to clarify the current legal landscape in Montana,” Bishop said in her opening statement. “It codifies statutory protection for abortion that is consistent with the current state constitutional protection for abortion rights.”
The bill also repeals several parts of Montana code related to abortion that Bishop said are legally unenforceable, including a parental-consent requirement for minors, informed consent from the patient, a prohibition on what state law defines as a “partial-birth abortion,” and a policy that bars abortion providers from contributing to sex education classes in public school districts.
“The struck and repealed sections have been found unconstitutional or are currently enjoined in our courts,” Bishop said. Like other efforts to reduce unnecessary laws introduced this session, she continued, “repeal is the only remedy for code that is no longer an accurate reflection of our current law.”
Bishop was joined by 18 proponents, including Planned Parenthood Advocates of Montana and Missoula’s Blue Mountain Clinic, women’s rights groups and individuals who testified about their own decisions to end a pregnancy. One such person was Anne Angus, who said she decided to have an abortion after finding out that her baby had serious renal system deformities.
“There’s heavy discussion around parental rights in this session. And so I tell you, abortion is a parental right. I, as a mother, should have the right to make health care decisions for my pregnancy, for my son. And as heartbreaking as it is, sometimes, there is no happy ending in any of the options,” Angus said. “Restricting abortion access forces mothers like me to carry non-viable pregnancies. How do you prepare for a birth knowing that your baby is never coming home?”
Other supporters of HB 432 said the policy reflects Montana’s deeply held commitment to individual privacy and medical choice, aligning with the repeatedly upheld Montana Supreme Court decision in Armstrong v. State, which legalized abortion in Montana in 1999.
“Our bodies are not wards of the state,” said proponent Carol Wilder. “Women in Montana must continue to be allowed to choose their own health care for their own bodies, just as men are allowed to. No one’s private health care decisions, men’s or women’s, should be decided by politicians in Helena.” Roughly the same number of opponents spoke against the bill on Tuesday, including representatives from the conservative anti-abortion groups the Montana Family Foundation and Students for Life Action, House Majority Leader Sue Vinton, R-Billings, and other Montana residents.