Florida Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act (SB 1072)

SB 1072 would ban sex- and race-selective abortions.

The bill would require an abortion provider to sign an affidavit stating that he or she is not performing the abortion because of child’s sex or race and has no knowledge that pregnancy being terminated is because of child’s sex or race.

The bill would prohibit performing, inducing, or actively participating in termination knowing that it is sought based on sex or race of child or race of parent of that child.

It also would prohibit using force or threat of force to intentionally injure or intimidate any person for purpose of coercing sex-selection or race-selection termination, and would prohibit soliciting or accepting moneys to finance sex-selection or race-selection termination.

Sex-selection abortions are not a widespread problem in the United States. However, anti-choice activists cite three studies documenting the use of sex-selection abortion primarily among a small number of immigrant women. The National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum notes that a ban similar to the proposed Florida ban “targets and thus limits reproductive health access for Asian American & Pacific Islander women, who anti-choicers say are the ones guilty of this abortion practice. We know the real solution to ending the preference for sons in some families is getting to the root of the problem: gender inequity. If lawmakers truly want to help us, we call on them to promote equal pay, access to education, health equity, and ending violence against women.”

STATUS

Died in Health Policy Committee.

Companion bill to HB 845, which failed to pass in 2013.

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