Bill would outlaw abortions in Texas post-Roe

The Dallas Morning News reports today that some state legislators are taking steps to make sure abortions become illegal in Texas if the U.S. Supreme Court ever overturns Roe v. Wade.

State Sen. Dan Patrick, who was sworn in as a senator Tuesday, has filed a so-called "trigger bill" that would take effect if the Supreme Court should reverse its position on abortion. It's a change Patrick said is coming: "Many of us on the pro-life side and even those on the pro-choice side believe it is a matter of time before Roe vs. Wade is overturned," he told the Morning News. "I want to have a law on the books in Texas that clearly says if Roe vs. Wade is overturned, there will be no abortions in Texas." There's already a companion bill in the state House, filed by Rep. Warren Chisum. Both Patrick and Chisum are Republicans.

The reason for the trigger bill, Patrick said, is that it's not clear whether a Texas anti-abortion law in effect before the 1973 Roe decision would take effect if Roe were reversed. "Without a trigger bill, there would be a fight over whether we are a pro-life or a pro-choice state," Patrick said. "Some might view us as a pro-choice state because we have laws for parental notification and parental consent where if you get a parent's approval, you can have an abortion." As the Morning News notes, two-thirds of the state Senate has to agree to consider a bill before it can be discussed, meaning 11 of 31 senators could block the legislation. But Patrick pointed to Louisiana, which recently passed a similar trigger bill, as evidence that it could fly here.

There wasn't much immediate reaction from the pro-choice side, though a representative of NARAL Pro-Choice Texas said state lawmakers should focus on preventing unwanted pregnancies rather than making abortions illegal.