HF 954

as introduced - 84th Legislature (2005 - 2006) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to health; providing for grants and public
information related to positive abortion alternatives;
appropriating money; proposing coding for new law in
Minnesota Statutes, chapter 145.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1. SHORT TITLE.

This act may be cited as the "Positive Alternatives Act."

Sec. 2.

[145.4231] POSITIVE ABORTION ALTERNATIVES.

Subdivision 1.

Definitions.

For purposes of this
section, the following terms have the meaning given:

(1) "abortion" means the use of any means to terminate the
pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with knowledge that
the termination with those means will, with reasonable
likelihood, cause the death of the unborn child. For purposes
of this section, abortion does not include an abortion necessary
to prevent the death of the mother; and

(2) "unborn child" means an individual organism of the
species Homo sapiens from fertilization until birth.

Subd. 2.

Eligibility for grants.

(a) The commissioner of
health shall make grants to agencies or organizations for the
reasonable expenses of programs:

(1) providing information on, referral to, and assistance
in securing the services of relevant existing programs or
agencies that assist women in carrying their pregnancies to term
or providing services that assist women in carrying their
pregnancies to term, including, but not limited to, agencies and
programs that provide:

(i) medical attention for the pregnant woman for the
duration of her pregnancy;

(ii) nutritional support services;

(iii) housing assistance;

(iv) adoption services;

(v) education and employment assistance; and

(vi) parenting education and support services; and

(2) providing information or services to women, in person
and through community outreach, that encourage and assist women
in carrying their pregnancies to term.

(b) To be eligible for a grant, an agency or organization
must:

(1) be a private, nonprofit corporation;

(2) demonstrate that the program is conducted under
appropriate supervision;

(3) not charge women for services provided under the
program;

(4) provide each pregnant woman counseled with accurate
information on the developmental characteristics of unborn
children, including offering the printed information described
in section 145.4243;

(5) ensure that the program's sole purposes are to assist
and encourage women in carrying their pregnancies to term and to
maximize their potentials thereafter;

(6) ensure that none of the funds provided are used to
encourage or counsel a woman to have an abortion not necessary
to prevent her death, to provide her such an abortion, or to
refer her for such an abortion; and

(7) have had an alternatives to abortion program in
existence for at least one year as of July 1, 2005.

(c) The provisions, words, phrases, and clauses of
paragraph (b) are inseverable from this subdivision, and if any
provision, word, phrase, or clause of paragraph (b) or the
application thereof to any person or circumstance is held
invalid, such invalidity shall apply to all of this subdivision.

(d) Any organization or an affiliate of an organization
that provides abortions, promotes abortions, or directly refers
for abortions is ineligible to receive a grant under this
program.

Subd. 3.

Positive alternatives public information
campaign.

(a) The commissioner of health shall develop and
carry out a statewide public information campaign to educate the
public about:

(1) the scientifically accurate developmental
characteristics of the unborn child at various stages of
gestation, including the information described in section
145.4243, paragraph (a);

(2) alternatives to having an abortion, including bringing
a child to term to parent or for adoption;

(3) the availability and importance of prenatal care,
including how to obtain it;

(4) the availability of adoption services, including how to
start the process of making an adoption plan; and

(5) parenting and support services, including medical care,
nutrition information, counseling, job training and assistance,
education, and housing assistance.

(b) The campaign may include the following, all of which
materials must be objective, nonjudgmental, and designed to
convey only accurate scientific information and must be designed
to reach populations of different languages and of different
social and economic backgrounds:

(1) the preparation, publication, and dissemination of
information, pamphlets, brochures, and other reports;

(2) the preparation, maintenance, and promotion of
informative Web sites; and

(3) the preparation and dissemination of advertising.

Subd. 4.

Appropriations.

$4,000,000 is appropriated
biannually to the commissioner of health to make grants
according to subdivision 2. $1,000,000 is appropriated
biannually to the commissioner of health to implement
subdivision 3.

Subd. 5.

Duties of commissioner.

The commissioner of
health shall make grants under subdivision 2 beginning no later
than February 15, 2006, and biannually thereafter. The
commissioner shall monitor and review the programs of each
grantee to ensure that the grantee carefully adheres to the
purposes and requirements of subdivision 2 and shall cease
funding a grantee that fails to do so.

Subd. 6.

Severability.

Except as provided in subdivision
2, paragraph (c), if any provision, word, phrase, or clause of
this section or the application thereof to any person or
circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect
the provisions, words, phrases, clauses, or applications of this
section that can be given effect without the invalid provision,
word, phrase, clause, or application and to this end, the
provisions, words, phrases, and clauses of this section are
declared to be severable.

Subd. 7.

Supreme court jurisdiction.

The Minnesota
Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over an action
challenging the constitutionality of this section and shall
expedite the resolution of the action.