Bill Text: CA AR6 | 2017-2018 | Regular Session | Introduced

California Assembly Resolution 6 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Relative to women’s reproductive health.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 55-1)

Status: (Passed) 2017-01-30 - Read. Adopted. (Ayes 57. Noes 17. Page 237.). [AR6 Detail]

Download: California-2017-AR6-Introduced.html

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

House Resolution

No. 6

Introduced by Assembly Members Burke and Cristina Garcia

January 09, 2017

Relative to women’s reproductive health.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

HR 6, as introduced, Burke.

WHEREAS, January 22, 2017, marks the 44th anniversary of the United States Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Roe v. Wade, which affirmed that every woman has a fundamental right to control her own reproductive decisions and to decide whether to end or to continue pregnancy, and is an occasion deserving of celebration; and

WHEREAS, Roe v. Wade has been the cornerstone of women’s ability to control their reproductive lives, allowing every woman in America the right to decide when, if, and with whom to have children, and how many children to have; and

WHEREAS, Women’s ability to control their reproductive lives has helped and facilitated their participation in the economic and social life of our nation; and

WHEREAS, Roe v. Wade has drastically reduced the maternal mortality rate for women terminating their pregnancies in the United States. In the years prior to the decision, illegal abortion accounted for approximately 17 percent of all reported deaths attributable to pregnancy and childbirth, and many women were severely injured as a result of “back alley” abortion procedures; and

WHEREAS, Interference with a woman’s right to choose causes women to be forced into illegal and dangerous abortions, as they often were in the United States before the Roe v. Wade decision. Many women are forced to make these decisions today in countries where abortion is illegal and where the unsafe methods of illegal abortion lead to 13 percent of global maternal deaths annually, or 8 maternal deaths every hour. Many survivors of an illegal abortion suffer serious and often permanent injuries; and

WHEREAS, Roe v. Wade continues to protect the health and freedom of women throughout the United States; and

WHEREAS, The State of California stands in strong support of every woman’s fundamental right, as confirmed in Roe v. Wade, to make her own decisions regarding her pregnancy; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Assembly of the State of California, That the Assembly urges the President of the United States and the United States Congress to express their support for a woman’s fundamental right to control her own reproductive decisions, as well as their support for access to comprehensive reproductive health care, including the services provided by Planned Parenthood; and be it further

Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, to each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States, and to the author for appropriate distribution.