A harmful bill in the Texas legislature would criminalize transporting youth younger than 18, or funding their transportation, out of state to access abortion without written parental consent.
The legislation, Senate Bill (SB) 2352 and House Bill (HB) 4595, aims to stop young people from getting abortions by making it a second-degree felony, punishable with fines or jail time, to support them in their journey toward accessing care.
Young people across the United States already face extraordinary barriers accessing abortion.
Texas is one of 12 states where abortion is banned completely with almost no exceptions. Many other states ban abortion after 6 weeks, prohibit health insurance coverage for abortion care, or force people to receive biased “counseling” and wait up to 72 hours afterward before obtaining an abortion.
Many states have laws requiring youth under 18 to notify or get consent from a parent or legal guardian before an abortion. Most young people involve a parent or legal guardian in an abortion decision. But some fear that involving a parent could irreparably harm their family relationships, cause them to lose housing, expose them to abuse, or force them to continue a pregnancy against their will.
Young people in these circumstances can go before a judge to get permission for an abortion without involving a parent, an intimidating and burdensome process known as “judicial bypass.” After researching forced parental involvement laws and judicial bypass in several states, Human Rights Watch concluded that these laws violate young people’s rights and should be repealed.
On top of these legal hurdles, traveling out of state for abortion takes time and resources, and may require negotiating time away from work or school. Navigating these logistics can be significantly harder for young people.
Now, after forcing people to leave the state for care, legislators are threatening people who help youth to do so with up to 20 years in prison and potential fines.
SB 2352 and HB 4595 are part of a spate of recent bills that aim to criminalize abortion support, including abortion funds and other organizations that offer financial aid and help with logistics like transportation, accommodations, and childcare.
Access to abortion is a human right, and everyone should be able to access abortion without fear of criminal penalties for themselves or those supporting them. Texas lawmakers should reject this harmful bill.
