Abortion: Legislative Response Page: 14 of 19
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IB95095
The Civil Rights Commission Amendments Act of 1994, P.L. 103-419 (42 U.S.C.
1975a(f)), prohibits the Commission from studying or collecting information about U.S. laws
and policies concerning abortion.
Legislation in the 108th Congress
On February 20, 2003, the President signed H.J.Res. 2, the Consolidated Appropriations
Resolution, 2003 (P.L. 108-7). This omnibus bill encompassed the FY2003 appropriations
of eleven spending measures. In general, the omnibus legislation maintained longstanding
restrictions on the availability of federal funds for abortions.
Under the omnibus bill, appropriated funds could not be used to pay for abortions in the
federal prison system, except where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus
were carried to term, or in the case of rape. The measure also prohibited the use of
appropriated funds and local funds to perform any abortion in the District of Columbia,
except where the life of the mother would be endangered if the fetus was carried to term, or
where the pregnancy was the result of rape or incest.
With respect to foreign operations, the omnibus measure provided that none of the
appropriated funds and none of the unobligated balances from prior appropriations could be
made available to any organization or program which, as determined by the President,
supported or participated in the management of a program of coercive abortion or involuntary
sterilization. Appropriated funds could not be used overseas to pay for abortion as a method
of family planning or to motivate or coerce any person to perform abortions. In addition,
appropriated funds could not be used to lobby for or against abortion. Finally, appropriated
funds were available only to voluntary family planning projects that met specified
requirements.
Under the omnibus measure, funds appropriated in P.L. 107-115, the FY2002 Foreign
Operations appropriations measure, that were available for the UNFPA, and an equal amount
in the FY2003 omnibus measure, were available to the UNFPA only if the President
determined that the UNFPA no longer supported or participated in the management of a
program of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization. The omnibus measure stipulated
that none of the funds made available to the UNFPA could be used in the People's Republic
of China. Amounts spent by the UNFPA in the People's Republic of China in calendar years
2002 and 2003, as determined by the Secretary of State, were to be deducted from funds
made available to the UNFPA under P.L. 107-115 and the FY2003 omnibus measure.
Provisions of the omnibus measure concerning the Departments of Labor, HHS, and
Education provided that none of the appropriated funds and none of the funds in any trust
fund to which funds were appropriated under the omnibus measure, could be expended for
abortion, except where the pregnancy was the result of rape or incest, or where the mother's
life would be endangered if an abortion was not performed. The Treasury and Postal Service
provisions of the omnibus measure also prohibited the use of appropriated funds to pay for
an abortion, or the administrative expenses in connection with any health plan under the
federal employees health benefit program which provided any benefits or coverage for
abortions. However, this restriction did not apply where the life of the mother would be
endangered if the fetus was carried to term, or the pregnancy was the result of rape or incest.CRS-11
04-05-05
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Lewis, Karen J.; Shimabukuro, Jon O. & Ely, Dana. Abortion: Legislative Response, report, April 5, 2005; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc820435/m1/14/?rotate=270: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.