Separate Abortion and Family Planning Funding

Abortion is NOT "family planning"

H.B. 4655
Rep. Mark Jansen

History
Rep. Mark Jansen introduced HB 4655 to prioritize family planning funds away from abortion providing organizations. The bill was taken up in the House Family & Children Services Committee on June 19, 2001 and October 2, 2001 for testimony only. The committee reported the bill to the full House floor by a 5 to 4 vote on October 23, 2001. A vote was taken by the full House on December 13, 2001 and was passed 67-36 with 6 legislators not voting.

H.B. 4655 was then referred to the Senate Families, Mental Health, & Human Services Committee. A hearing was held on April 30, 2002 where the bill was amended to address concerns raised by the administration. The substitute bill was reported favorably by a 4 to 3 vote. The full Senate placed the bill on the order of third reading on May 1, 2002 and passed it by a 23-14 vote on May 2. On Right to Life's 2002 Legislative Day, May 7, the House concurred in the Senate amendments by a 67-38 vote.Governor Engler signed H.B. 4655 into law on May 23, 2002.

H.B. 5934, introduced by Rep. Mark Jansen on June 21, 2000 directs that state health funding for "family planning" programs be allocated first to organizations that do not do any of the following:

• perform or refer for abortions;
• publicly advocate for abortion (lobby, political activity, file lawsuits);
• or maintain a policy position that "family planning" includes abortion.

The bill was introduced as an alternative to an amendment Rep. Jansen planned to offer to the annual budget bill for the Department of Community Health. That budget disperses over $15 million each year for "family planning" programs. The amendment to the bill was withdrawn in lieu of H.B. 5934 being introduced. A hearing on the bill was scheduled for 11/28/00, but was subsequently cancelled. H.B. 5934 died in committee at the end of the 2000 session.

Background
For years, prolife citizen-taxpayers have been frustrated by the fact that millions of government dollars in the name of family planning services, go to abortion-promoting organizations like Planned Parenthood. The thrust of "family planning" programs is to promote general reproductive health and prevent pregnancies. However, millions of tax dollars going to Planned Parenthood for these programs subsidize their staff salaries and operational costs, allowing them to carry out their abortion advocacy. Besides being the nation's top provider of abortions, Planned Parenthood makes no apologies for its position that abortion should be considered part of comprehensive family planning services. For them, abortion is considered a method of birth control. It is time to redirect our tax dollars to health providers who are not abortion advocates.

For more background information on Planned Parenthood, click here

For more information on this legislation, click here

You may view H.B. 4655 on the Michigan Legislature's website at www.MichiganLegislature.org using "Search by Bill Number."