April 5, 2013 Legislative Update

Feminist First Friday in Fargo has moved location. Please note that the gathering will be hosted at one of the organizer’s home located at 801 South Drive. Map http://goo.gl/maps/5hfYi


There are a few rather large announcement on the national level.

1. Senator Heitkamp announced her support for marriage equality. NDWN is also a supporter of marriage equality and we are very pleased with the announcement. http://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=341273

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HEITKAMP STATEMENT ON MARRIAGE EQUALITY

 

Friday, April 5, 2013

 

FARGO, ND- Today, Senator Heidi Heitkamp released the following statement regarding her position on marriage equality:

 

“In speaking with North Dakotans from every corner of our great state, and much personal reflection, I have concluded the federal government should no longer discriminate against people who want to make lifelong, loving commitments to each other or interfere in personal, private, and intimate relationships.  I view the ability of anyone to marry as a logical extension of this belief. The makeup of families is changing, but the importance of family is enduring.”

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1. In a long-awaited decision released early this morning, U.S. District Court Judge Edward Korman ordered the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to make emergency contraception available over-the-counter to women of all ages, marking a major win for public health and women’s rights in a year that has seen science otherwise buried under an avalanche of anti-choice politics. In his decision, Judge Korman orders the FDA to make levonorgestrel-based emergency contraception available over-the-counter without an age or point-of-sale restriction. http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2013/04/05/court-orders-fda-to-make-emergency-contraception-available-over-the-counter-for-all-ages/

On the state level, it is important to note a two hearings worth watching in the state legislature. Click here for the updated tracking grid.

1. Senate Appropriations will hear 1356, funding for Head Start, on April 8 at 10:00. The House removed all funding from the Head Start bill and the Senate is recommending a small appropriations. Head Start programs ND receive no state support. The program has been hit hard by sequestration, so now is a vital time for the state to invest in this valuable program.
2. The Senate appropriations will also hear 1422 (child care stabilization bill) on April 8th at 10:30, with child care in crisis in ND it is important that the state invest in the infrastructure to keep child care centers open

If you are able to attend these hearing and show support for children of ND, please do. These bills are important to the infrastructure on ND.



SB 2368 (20 week abortion ban) had a conference committee meeting on Tuesday. The committee unanimously recommended the House accept the Senate version and not the House’s, which had an amendment attacking a comprehensive sex-education program and other far greater negative implications. This bill now goes back to the House for a vote. Contact your House members to urge a NO vote on 2368.



And, final news of the day: a few Grand Forks individuals have filed to refer the bills signed by the Governor restricting women’s reproductive health. The motives of the proponents are questionable – and NDWN has not been part of it. The Fargo Forum’s editorial on the matter reflects our position well.

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Forum editorial: A curious referral campaign
The intention of a truck driver and a libertarian to refer North Dakota’s recently signed abortion laws appears to be more bluster than substance. The reason behind referral of a law usually is disagreement with the law. In this case, Gary Hangsleben and Roland Riemers, both of Grand Forks, are on opposite ends of the pro-abortion rights/anti-abortion spectrum, yet they find common ground regarding referral of the laws. It’s a peculiarly contradictory campaign that seems to have more to do with their views of the role of legislatures and courts, rather than the efficacy of abortion laws.

But that’s OK. Any citizen can petition to refer a law for any reason. In this situation, however, referrals motivated by anything other than desire to overturn the laws can be counterproductive and can be characterized as an abuse of the process.

Secondly, the laws most certainly will be challenged in federal court before they are scheduled to take effect Aug. 1. Any referral that clears hurdles to get on the statewide ballot would be meaningless, in that the referred laws likely will be tied up in litigation for years.

The hurdles to the ballot include a requirement that each law is referred separately, meaning petitioners would have to gather 13,452 valid signatures on each petition by June 24. Additionally, a fourth abortion bill is awaiting final action. If the governor signs it, will it, too, be part of the referral drive as a fourth separate signature-gathering effort? And if the signature efforts fail (as several have in the recent past), will that be seen as a measure of sentiment against the new laws?

Hangsleben and Riemers say these matters are too important to be left to lawmakers and courts; they want to use referrals to simulate discussion among North Dakotans. That’s a noble notion, but where have they been the past few months? If ever North Dakotans have participated in a lively, emotional and sometimes nasty debate, the abortion bills measure up.

Finally, North Dakotans will vote next year on the overall abortion question via a constitutional measure that would in effect ban all abortions for any reason at all stages of life. That’s the big one, and that’s the one that will determine whether North Dakotans will tolerate an extraordinary intrusion by government into their private lives. If the Grand Forks petitioners want to stimulate debate, they should concentrate on the constitutional amendment, not waste time on referring laws that will be bound up in court for years.