New Austin abortion protections don’t actually ‘decriminalize’ abortion, experts warn – By Michael Murney (Houston Chronicle) / July 22, 2022
The GRACE Act, which passed Austin City Council on Thursday, is unlikely to survive inevitable court challenges from the state. The act also stops short of ‘decriminalizing’ abortion and other reproductive healthcare services, experts warn.
The Austin City Council voted Thursday to protect the rights of those providing and seeking abortions within Austin city limits, in what experts say is an important step towards demonstrating opposition to Texas’ state level abortion bans following the reversal of Roe v. Wade last month.
However, the same experts also warn that the municipal-level ordinances do not mean Austinites, or people seeking reproductive healthcare within Austin city limits, are legally protected from civil or criminal prosecution under Texas’ existing abortion bans.
During a special meeting on Thursday, councilmembers approved the “Guarding the Right to Abortion Care for Everyone” Act, or the GRACE Act, which includes four resolutions that aim to protect abortions within the city of Austin, but don’t necessarily decriminalize abortion and certainly don’t legalize it:
The first resolution blocks discrimination based on individual reproductive health choices for housing or employment opportunities; the second prohibits the City from using public funds to compile or report information about miscarriages or other reproductive healthcare acts to other government agencies. This item also bans surveilling people seeking or providing abortions.
