LD 1343 would prohibit Maine towns, cities, and other municipalities from banning abortion at the local level. All of Maine's people deserve access to this essential healthcare no matter where they may live.
LD 1343 would ensure every Mainer, regardless of what town they live in, has the same rights to abortion care. It would prohibit towns or municipalities from enacting any local ordinance in conflict with Maine’s Reproductive Privacy Act. It would prevent local municipalities from restricting access, a tactic of increasing popularity in states with legal abortion rights. An emerging tactic, anti-abortion extremists are working in cities and towns throughout the country to enact local ordinances to restrict abortion and related care. City officials in Colorado and New Mexico, for example, considered abortion bans in 2022, and even before the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling, anti-abortion advocates pushed to enact restrictions at the local level.
Without federal protections for abortion, it is critically important that state lawmakers act to ensure the right to an abortion remains a right for every Mainer, no matter what town or city you live in, and that we work to prevent the creation of patchwork laws that restrict access. The Reproductive Privacy Act guarantees the right to abortion in Maine. LD 1343 serves to protect the rights and freedoms for every person in Maine.
BILL MOVEMENT:
- Bill introduced: 3/28/23
- Referred to Judiciary Committee: 3/28/23
- Public Hearing in Judiciary Committee: 5/1/23
- Work Session and Vote in Judiciary Committee: Scheduled for 5/10/23
- Passed House of Representatives: N/A
- Passed Senate: N/A
- Action by Governor: N/A
