Senate Pro Tempore Toni Atkins
By MADISON HIRNEISEN
THE CENTER SQUARE STAFF REPORTER
(The Center Square) — Leading California lawmakers introduced a constitutional amendment Wednesday that will explicitly put the right to an abortion and contraceptives in the state’s Constitution.
The bill, Senate Constitutional Amendment 10, comes weeks after a leaked draft majority opinion from the U.S. Supreme Court suggests justices are poised to overturn Roe v. Wade — the landmark 1973 decision that guaranteed constitutional protections for abortions. If the court moves to overturn the ruling, more than two-dozen states could be poised to ban abortion, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
In response to the leaked draft and what it could mean for abortion access nationwide, California lawmakers vowed last month to introduce an amendment to explicitly enshrine the right to an abortion in the state’s constitution.
“Too many times, history has shown us that human rights must be enshrined in the Constitution so that no one can infringe upon them. This is one such historic moment, and it must be met with a historic response,” Senate Pro Tempore Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, said in a statement Wednesday.
In California, constitutional amendments require a two-third majority in both chambers of the state Legislature and must go before voters for approval. The proposal is running on a tight timeline to qualify for the November ballot, as the measure must pass both houses in the legislature by June 30 in order to be eligible.
The constitutional amendment comes on top of a legislative package of bills that aim to expand reproductive rights for people in the state and others who may come from out of state to seek an abortion in California. One bill in the package would provide grants to organizations that assist low-income pregnant individuals with accessing abortion in California, while another would protect pregnant individuals from the enforcement of out-of-state civil actions related to abortion within California.
California lawmakers, as well as Gov. Gavin Newsom, have said they are prepared to become a safe haven for abortions if Roe v. Wade is overturned, saying they will welcome pregnant individuals from out of state to receive services in California.
If the Supreme Court does overturn Roe v. Wade, the state could see a nearly 3,000% increase in the number of women whose nearest abortion provider is in California if a total ban on abortion is enacted, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
SCA 10 is jointly-authored by Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, who said in a statement that denying women the “ability to make their own healthcare decisions is to deny that we are all equal.”
“By ensuring that Californians have the right to choose enshrined in our constitution, we will make certain that everyone can determine their own future as they see fit, regardless of the political whims of a radicalized Supreme Court,” Speaker Rendon said.
The bill also has the support of several lawmakers, Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California and the National Abortion Rights Action League California.
Lawmakers said the legislation is expected to be heard in policy committees starting next week.
Madison Hirneisen covers California for The Center Square.
