The No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act () is a bill that was introduced to the

112th Congress The 112th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013. It convened in Washington, D.C. on January 3, 2011, and ended on January 3, 2013, 17 ...

of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

by Rep. Chris Smith ( R-

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

) and

Dan Lipinski Daniel William Lipinski (born July 15, 1966) is an American politician and political scientist who served eight terms as the U.S. representative for Illinois's 3rd congressional district from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Blue Dog Coalition, Lip ...

( D-

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

). The bill's stated purpose is " prohibit taxpayer funded abortions and to provide for conscience protections, and for other purposes." In large measure, it would render permanent the restrictions on federal funding of

abortion in the United States Abortion in the United States and its territories is a divisive issue in American politics and culture wars, with widely different abortion laws in U.S. states. Since 1976, the Republican Party has generally sought to restrict abortion acc ...

laid out in the

Hyde Amendment In U.S. politics, the Hyde Amendment is a legislative provision barring the use of federal funds to pay for abortion, except to save the life of the woman, or if the pregnancy arises from incest or rape. Before the Hyde Amendment took effect in ...

. The bill passed the House of Representatives on May 4, 2011 by a vote of 251-175. The House of Representatives passed similar legislation in 2014, 2015, and 2017.

Controversy over language about rape

The text of the most recent version of the

provides an exception for cases of rape, stating that its prohibitions shall not apply "if the pregnancy is the result of an act of

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...

incest Incest ( ) is human sexual activity between family members or close relatives. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by affinity (marriage or stepfamily), adopti ...

."Current Hyde Amendment text
The rape exception in H.R. 3 uses somewhat different language, stating that its limitations shall not apply "if the pregnancy occurred because the pregnant female was the subject of an act of forcible rape or, if a minor, an act of incest." Some women's rights groups have questioned the addition of the qualifier "forcible" to the word "rape" in H.R. 3, noting that it excludes many forms of rape and "takes us back to a time where just saying no was not enough." However, the final version of the bill ultimately did not include the term "forcible rape." One critic, ''

Mother Jones Mary G. Harris Jones (1837 (baptized) – November 30, 1930), known as Mother Jones from 1897 onwards, was an Irish-born American schoolteacher and dressmaker who became a prominent union organizer, community organizer, and activist. She h ...

'' magazine, alleged that the bill is a deliberate attempt on the part of the Republican Party to change the legal definition of rape. Another critic, Representative

Debbie Wasserman Schultz Deborah Wasserman Schultz (née Wasserman; born September 27, 1966) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from , first elected to Congress in 2004. A member of the Democratic Party, she is a former chair of the Democrat ...

(D-FL) criticized the legislation, too. An article in The Raw Story had this to say about her reaction to HR 3. "The Florida Democrat, a rising star in her party and vice chair of the Democratic National Committee, is a leading voice on women's issues. And she didn't mince her words in a
interview with The Raw Story
fiercely denouncing GOP colleagues over H.R. 3, the "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act." 'It is absolutely outrageous,' Wasserman Schultz said in an exclusive interview late Monday afternoon. "I consider the proposal of this bill a violent act against women..." She continued, "It really is -- to suggest that there is some kind of rape that would be okay to force a woman to carry the resulting pregnancy to term, and abandon the principle that has been long held, an exception that has been settled for 30 years, is to me a violent act against women in and of itself," Wasserman Schultz said." "Rape is when a woman is forced to have sex against her will, and that is whether she is conscious, unconscious, mentally stable, not mentally stable," the four-term congresswoman added." Critics insist that HR 3 would directly diminish the rights of women who have fallen victim to rapes that are not considered "forcible" by the bill, as well as increase the danger of these types of sexual abuse occurring.
TalkingPointsMem
reported
"In an interview with the anti-abortion site LifeNews, Douglas Johnson, the legislative director for the

National Right to Life Committee The National Right to Life Committee (NRLC) is the oldest and largest national anti-abortion organization in the United States with affiliates in all 50 states and more than 3,000 local chapters nationwide. Since the 1980s, NRLC has influen ...

, admits the language in the House's No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act "would not allow general federal funding of abortion on all under-age pregnant girls." However, the bill's text does not offer a definition of "rape" nor of "forcible rape." Responding to the criticism about the language used in the rape exception clause, bill co-sponsor

(D) stated, "The language of H.R. 3 was not intended to change existing law regarding taxpayer funding for abortion in cases of rape, nor is it expected that it would do so. Nonetheless, the legislative process will provide an opportunity to clarify this should such a need exist."

Political impact

David Weigel David Weigel (born September 26, 1981) is an American journalist. He works for ''Semafor''. Weigel previously covered politics for ''The Washington Post,'' ''Slate,'' and ''Bloomberg Politics'' and is a contributing editor for ''Reason'' magaz ...

has pointed to this bill, as well as to the proposed Protect Life Act and efforts to defund Planned Parenthood, as a move that will backfire on the Republican Party. He writes that Democrats such as Rep.

Steve Israel Steven J. Israel (born May 30, 1958) is an American political commentator, lobbyist, author, bookseller and former politician. He served as a U.S. Representative from New York from 2001 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was electe ...

( D- NY), chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, already are and will continue to be pointing out that the party made its top priority redefining rape, and otherwise focusing on social issues, rather than creating jobs.

References

{{reflist United States proposed federal abortion legislation Rape in the United States Proposed legislation of the 112th United States Congress