No money in $8.8 billion budget bill for clinics that perform, counsel in favor of or refer patients to abortion services
By Dave Andrusko
Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts
When the unicameral Nebraska legislature was in the throes of a fierce fight over its two-year budget, pro-life Gov. Pete Ricketts wrote, “Senators need to lay their differences aside and work together to get these budget adjustments done with the pro-life language.”
Responding to that forceful nudge, the legislature passed a package that included the Scheer Amendment on a 38-6 vote. The Scheer Amendment “provided a way to move pro-life language forward in the state budget,” explained Julie Schmit-Albin, executive director of Nebraska Right to Life.
The governor then signed the bill into law on Wednesday.
“Nebraska Right to Life is thankful to Governor Ricketts and the majority of the Legislature which consistently voted to keep the pro-life language on Title X in the budget bill.” said Schmit-Albin. “Planned Parenthood of the Heartland wants to tell the Federal Government how to run its Title X program and threatens litigation. We will see if that comes to fruition.”
Gov. Rickets posted that the budget bills
contain important new budget language, which ensures that Title X taxpayer dollars do not fund abortion services, including abortion referrals, at any clinic in Nebraska. Thank you to Speaker Scheer and Chairman Stinner for their leadership in guiding these adjustments through the legislative process.
While pro-abortion legislators were trying to change the bill, the Omaha World-Herald’s Emily Nitcher wrote that “Entities that provide abortion services could qualify for funds only if their Title X services are legally, physically and financially separated from their abortion services. …”
Once the governor signed the budget, the Associated Press wrote, “Although supporters say Planned Parenthood [of the Heartland] could qualify by separating its abortion and non-abortion services, opponents say the group probably won’t have time to do so.”
Of course that is totally bunk. Planned Parenthood’s investment in promoting and performing abortion is total and absolute. “Time” has nothing to do with getting out of the abortion business.