The Pennsylvania Catholic Conference praised Republicans in the Pennsylvania Senate Health and Human Services Committee on January 25 for passing a bill to restrict the use of public money for abortions. The measure is sponsored by Sen. Judy Ward (R-Blair, Fulton, Cumberland, Franklin and Huntingdon).
Senate Bill 956 would prohibit abortion from being declared a constitutional right in Pennsylvania and also would prevent taxpayer money from funding abortions. The issue of public funding for abortions is now before the courts.
The vote went strictly along party lines, 7-4, with Republicans in support and Democrats in opposition.
“We thank these senators for this effort to keep public funding out of the abortion business,” said PCC Executive Director Eric Failing. “We know that abortion advocates are working hard to remove barriers to making taxpayer money available to those who perform these procedures. It’s unconscionable that hard-working Pennsylvanians who believe in the sanctity of life could end up paying for abortion through their tax dollars.”
The Pennsylvania Catholic Conference is based in Harrisburg and is the public affairs arm of Pennsylvania’s Catholic bishops. Stay informed with news from the PCC at www.pacatholic.org, www.facebook.com/PACatholic, and www.twitter.com/pacatholic.
(Al Gnoza is the Communications Director of the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference.)
(Photo courtesy of Catholic News Agency, GagliardiPhotography via Shutterstock.)
By Al Gnoza, Special to The Witness
