Legislation

Current NE Legislation – First Session

LB 213: Require fetal development curriculum – SUPPORT

Introducer: Senator Holdcroft
Teaches the truth and beauty of human life from conception by requiring the State Board of Education to adopt academic content standards on human development that accurately portrays the biological science of human embryology for the curriculum of elementary, middle school, and high school students.

LB 512: Chemical Abortion Safety Protocol Act – SUPPORT

Introducer: Senator Holdcroft
Requires in-person health examinations before the abortion pill can be prescribed and an in-person follow-up visit with the physician to check for any adverse complications.

LB 669: Informed consent & screening for coercion and trafficking – SUPPORT

Introducer: Senator Storer
Strengthens Nebraska’s informed consent for abortion by requiring screening for coercion, abuse, and trafficking before an abortion can be performed and that the pregnant woman be given the numbers for the domestic violence and human trafficking hotline, informed of the resources and assistance available to her and the opportunity to make a confidential phone call, and the right to sue providers who fail to provide her informed consent.

LB 214: Safe Haven Baby Boxes – SUPPORT

Introducer: Senator Holdcroft
Strengthens Nebraska’s Safe Haven law by authorizing the installation of Safe Haven Baby Boxes, padded, temper-controlled devices with motion sensors and dual-alarm systems, at fire stations for safe and anonymous surrender of a newborn infant ninety days old or younger.

LB 709: Adoption Tax Credit – SUPPORT

Introducer: Senator Bostar
Creates a refundable state tax credit equal to ten percent of the federal tax credit for any taxpayer who is eligible for the federal adoption expenses tax credit.

LB 632: Humane disposition of fetal remains – SUPPORT

Introducer: Senator Hansen
Requires facilities that perform abortions to individually bury or cremate the remains of an aborted unborn child and prevents treating the bodies of unborn children as medical waste that can be thrown in the trash or sewer.

LB 124: Increase penalties for causing the death of an unborn child – SUPPORT

Introducer: Senator Holdcroft
Increases the penalty for drunk driving resulting in the death of an unborn child from a Class IIIA to Class IIA felony.

Source

SOURCE: https://nebraskarighttolife.org/legislation/

1991 – Parental Notification

Requires at least one parent to be notified before an abortion can be performed on a minor 17 years or younger. A judicial bylaw exists to allow a judge to determine if a minor can seek an abortion without parental knowledge.

1993 – Informed Consent

Requireseducation be provided to a person seeking an abortion on fetal development as well as informationon public and private agencies and services available to assist a person through pregnancy, upon childbirth, and while the child is dependent. These agencies/services include adoption agencies and agencies/services available to prevent unintended pregnancies. Over the years, additional educational tools have been added to the bill, such as ultrasound being available to the mother seeking abortion and a 24-hour waiting period once information is received.

1997 – Ban on Partial-Birth Abortion

Bans the abortion procedure in which the person performing the abortion partially delivers vaginally a living unborn child before killing the unborn child and completing the delivery. Soon after the law was enacted, abortionist LeRoy Carhart of Bellevue sought a challenge through the courts, citing the law was unconstitutional. It was determined unconstitutional and was later taken to the U.S. Supreme Court, Stenberg vs. Carhart. The court found it to be unconstitutional, as there were no exceptions and would place an undue burden on a woman seeking an abortion. In 2003, Congress addressed the issues of the court, which led to a federal ban on this procedure.

2002 – Assault on an Unborn Child Act

A person who commits the offense of assault of an unborn child during the commission of any criminal assault on a pregnant woman and recklessly causes serious bodily injury to her unborn childwould be charged with a Class I misdemeanor.

2004 – Homicide of Unborn Child Act

Reclassifies manslaughter of an unborn child and 1st degree assault of an unborn child as a IIA felony. It defines murder of an unborn child in the 1st degree, murder in the second degree, manslaughter and motor vehicle homicide.

2009 – Mother’s Right to See Her Unborn Child Ultrasound Law

Ensures a woman about to undergo an abortion has informed consent about the procedure. It stipulates the abortion facility must display the ultrasound screen to the woman, allowing her to determine whether or not she wants to see the screen. The burden will no longer be on the mother in a crisis situation to have to ask to view the screen.

2010 – Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act

The first of its kind in the United States, the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act prohibits abortion after 20 weeks gestation except when the mother “has a condition which so complicates her medical condition as to necessitate the abortion of her pregnancy to avert death or to avert serious risk of substantial or irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function or…it is necessary to preserve the life of an unborn child.”

2011 – Ban on Webcam Abortions

Extends the standard of care for abortion to provide that every abortion, whether chemical or surgical, is done by a licensed physician physically present in the same room as the pregnant woman or girl. Webcam abortions,which are done over a computer link, does not require a physician to be present at the time the chemical abortion is initiated.

2011 – Parental Consent

Requires minors to provide notarized proof of consent from at least one parent or legal guardian before an abortion can be performed, except in certain medical emergencies, or unless the girl can prove her parents are abusive or that she is “sufficiently mature and well-informed” about the risks of abortion as determined by a judge.

2017 – Compassionate Care for Medically Challenging Pregnancies Act

Addresses those families who are given a diagnosis of lethal fetal anomalies. It ensures that doctors fully equip women with information on perinatal hospice care at the time of a difficult diagnosis. Parents are made aware of resources and support services to assist in coping with the challenges they face.

2018 – Ending Taxpayer Funding of Abortion

Governor Ricketts and the 2018 Legislature, while working with the state budget, ensured that state Title X funding would not be available to those agencies who provided and referred for abortion services.

2018 – Non-viable Birth Certificates for Miscarried Children

Provides commemorative certificates to mothers who miscarry prior to the 20th week of pregnancy. It affirms the dignity of life and humanely acknowledges the loss that a mother undergoes through miscarriage.

2019 – Abortion Reversal Pill Act

Bolsters the state’s informed consent protections. It requires doctors to direct women to information on how to reverse the abortion pill when the drug isprescribed. The chemical abortion, RU486, is a drug cocktail containing a two-pill process. Research indicates that mifepristone alone (first pill) is not always effective at ending a pregnancy. It provides information for those whomay change their mind and want to continue their pregnancy after taking mifepristone–letting them know it may not be too late.

2019 – Ban on Dismemberment Abortion

Bans the use of an abortion process known as Dilation and Evacuation (D&E). The procedure involves slowly dilating a woman’s cervix then removing the unborn baby through dismemberment.

2022 – Roe v Wade Overturned!

Supreme Court Decision: Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health – June 24, 2022
The Supreme Court of the United States overturned Roe v. Wade and Casey v. Planned Parenthood on Friday, undoing the decades old court rulings that forced states to legalize abortion up to at least 24 weeks of pregnancy. There is confusion about what this means. While overturning Roe is monumental, it isn’t the end of the pro-life fight. It is just the beginning.
“Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” wrote Justice Alito in the majority opinion. “We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled. It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”

A Legal History of Roe v. Wade: VIDEO
READ MORE HERE

2023 – “Preborn Child Protection Act”, an Amendment to the “Let Them Grow Act”

This bill offers protection to children at 12 weeks gestation in the state of Nebraska. More info can be found here.

2024 – Expanding the Nebraska Newborn Safe Haven Act

This law expands the state’s safe haven law to allow infants to be surrendered at police and fire stations. The law now allows parents to call 911 to safely surrender their infant to emergency personnel. The age at which the infant can be surrendered is extended from 30 days old to 3 months old. The law also includes a public awareness campaign.

2024 – Create the Nebraska Prenatal Plus Program

This law will cover the cost of prenatal services for at-risk mothers – defined as pregnant women eligible for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance program who are determined to be at risk for negative maternal or infant health outcomes. Prenatal services under the program include nutritional counseling, psychosocial counseling and support, general client education and health promotion, breastfeeding support and targeted case management

DID YOU KNOW NEBRASKA HAS A STATUTE SUPPORTING LIFE? READ IT HERE

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