Gov. Mark Gordon on Friday rejected new abortion regulations that would have made it more difficult to operate clinics and required women to undergo mandatory ultrasounds before a doctor performed the procedure.
While Gordon touted his continued support of the state’s current abortion bans in his veto letter to Secretary of State Chuck Gray, he felt more lawsuits over this legislation would simply tie up courts and stall resolution further.
“We remain in purgatory,” he stated. “I am vetoing this bill in an effort to keep our current court case on track for a speedy resolution on the issue of the constitutionality of the Life is Human Right Act and the Prohibition of Chemical Abortions law.”
House Bill 148 – Regulation of abortions cleared the statehouse with wide margins, and vetoing it opened Gordon up to criticism from the far right.
However, Gordon in part blamed his veto on add-ons to the bill, lauding its original form that focused on regulating procedural abortion clinics without mentioning medication abortions, ultrasounds or waiting periods.
“I am disappointed that the original bill proposed by Representative [Martha] Lawley, which would have provided an appropriate fix to regulate surgical abortion clinics, was amended and arguably subsequently burdened with considerations that misaligned it with laws Wyoming is currently defending before the courts,” he wrote.
Hours after Gordon announced his veto, Lawley responded that she was “extremely disappointed” in his decision.
“This bill passed with overwhelming support in both the House and Senate,” she wrote in a statement. “I find Governor Gordon’s reasons for vetoing this bill completely unpersuasive. Furthermore, as I read the many letters coming from the Governor, I have a growing concern about Executive branch overreach into both the Legislative and Judicial branches.”
One of several bills introduced this session to further regulate abortion, HB 148 was the only one to make it to Gordon’s desk.
The ultrasound provision was originally part of HB0137 – Chemical abortions-ultrasound requirement. While that bill died, its sponsor — House Majority Floor Leader Chip Neiman (R-Hullett) — requested some of its provisions piggyback into HB 148 via an amendment, which passed on the House floor.
Proponents of the legislation argued it would protect the safety of women seeking an abortion while the state’s two abortion bans were tied up in court.
“As long as abortion remains legal, we have a responsibility to protect the health and the safety of women getting abortions,” Lawley said last month.
Opponents, including doctors and health care experts, stated it would not protect women — citing the already low mortality and morbidity rates with the procedure — but could force them to seek out less safe methods of self-induced abortion. There is only one clinic offering elective abortions in Wyoming, and bill opponents feared the regulations would shut it down.
There is also research suggesting universal ultrasound requirements aren’t necessary.
Utah rejected similar ultrasound requirements, in part because female lawmakers drew attention to the fact that most early-term pregnancies require transvaginal ultrasounds given how small an embryo is.
Those can be traumatic for young girls and abuse victims, and should only be used when it’s medically necessary, said Jackson OB-GYN Dr. Giovannina Anthony, who is one of the plaintiffs challenging Wyoming’s abortion bans.
Reactions
The far-right Wyoming Freedom Caucus, a frequent critic of Gordon’s, said his decision to veto the bill would make abortion “increasingly common” in Wyoming. The group later advocated for a special session to override Gordon’s veto on this and other pieces of legislation.
In a statement, the Freedom Caucus said bill was necessary because of “judicial activism” at the district court in Teton County (which has sent the key Constitutional questions in the case up the chain to the state supreme court.)
“Governor Gordon, in vetoing this bill, stands shoulder to shoulder with the abortion industry, which is motivated first by profits and which ignores the safety of women,” the group wrote.
Research has shown that giving birth is more dangerous for mothers than abortions, which have morbidity rates at fewer than 0.5 deaths per 100,000 people in the U.S. in recent years.
Meanwhile, Libby Skarin — acting executive director for the ACLU of Wyoming — stated in a press release that the organization is “thrilled” that Gordon vetoed HB 148.
Requiring clinics to be licensed as ambulatory surgical centers, requiring hospital admitting privileges for doctors and requiring ultrasounds at least 48 hours before an abortion “have nothing to do with patient safety or providing good care,” the ACLU added.
“Instead, this unnecessary bill was an attempt to use government regulation to shut down clinics and strip Wyomingites of abortion access,” it stated.
How we got here
This is the third year in a row that Wyoming lawmakers have passed legislation targeting abortion.
In 2022, the governor signed a “trigger” bill that would ban most abortions in Wyoming if Roe v. Wade fell, which happened in June of that year.
In late July, the day the law is set to go into effect, 9th District Court Judge Melissa Owens granted a temporary restraining order stalling its enforcement. That was later followed by a temporary injunction.
As that court case progressed, lawmakers were discussing other bans. In 2023, the Legislature passed two: House Bill 152 – Life is a Human Right Act, a near-total ban that would replace the trigger ban, and Senate File 109 – Prohibiting chemical abortions, which was the first of its kind in the nation to target medication abortions.
Gov. Gordon signed SF 109 into law while allowing HB 152 to go into effect without his signature.
As Gordon made those decisions, a lawsuit was already waiting to enjoin the near-total ban (the medication abortion ban wasn’t set to go into effect until July).
Judge Owens granted a temporary restraining order for HB 152 a few days after it went into effect. Later in June, she also blocked the enforcement of SF 109. The two bans were rolled into the same case.
Now, after many filings on both sides, Owens is mulling over requests from both the plaintiffs and the state over whether to rule in their favor without a trial, possibly ending the district court’s role in this case. Regardless of the outcome, the case is expected to be appealed to the Wyoming Supreme Court.
People testifying against the bill said they believed HB 148 still violated the state constitution in a number of ways, including Article 1, Section 38.
That section — supported overwhelmingly by voters in 2012 — states:
“Each competent adult shall have the right to make his or her own health care decisions.”
That section also allows the Legislature to determine “reasonable and necessary restrictions” on that right to “protect the health and general welfare of the people or to accomplish the other purposes set forth in the Wyoming Constitution.”
Abortion is the intentional premeditated taking of an innocent human life with malice aforethought. Therefore abortion is murder. God commands “you shall not murder”. Exodus 20:13 ESV
Abortion is not Healthcare. Abortion is child sacrifice.
God commands us to rescue those who are being taken away to death, to hold back those stumbling to the slaughter. Proverbs 24:11
No mother has a right to murder her own child. Abortion does not prevent the life of a human being. Abortion ENDS the life of an innocent human being.
I am a very religious person and the “God” I believe in understands, supports, and loves each person who has chosen to send an unborn back for safekeeping. My “God” is not judgemental and understands that some women are not ready and/or able to become a mother. Also, my “God” understands that sometimes the fertilized egg is not able to grow into a healthy fetus. How dare the forced-birther religious fanatics presume to speak for “God” by yelling ‘murderer’ as a woman comes into a clinic for a medical procedure for reasons that are none of their business, is hateful, mean, ignorant and behavior NOT pleasing to any God.
You have always been reasonable and rational when discussing your belief in your religion. That has been refreshing in comparison to the religious fundamentals who use their beliefs to discriminate and act like bigots.
There should be more religious leaders cut from the same cloth as you. Cheers
The God you believe in is okay with killing babies? Just trying to understand your position.
Who said anything about killing babies? I think you’re confusing terms. But you know that already. So what is it you’re really trying to do with your comment. Just trying to understand your position.
Well said my friend, ‘wish every one could walk a mile in womens’ shoes, then they would know what its like to have to choose’.
“God” has been misrepresented in some of these comments, especially by “very religious and their cheerleaders.” God is absolutely forgiving and yes there’s absolute Scriptural evidence that every pre born human being who has their innocent blood shed and life ended is most certainly in God’s presence in Paradise! God is also Holy and Commands people who claim to follow Him to be Holy. Shedding innocent blood is sin. We can’t wink at sin and expect a Holy God to ignore it. God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him will have eternal life. The only innocent shed blood we should be partaking of is the blood Jesus shed on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins. We should be more reasonable fathers, mothers and neighbors. Maybe thinking like this is just bigoted and hateful. Try loving Christ and loving your neighbor in need. Not perfect, just forgiven
If the rights of the “pre born” continued post birth, I’d be more inclined to be sympathetic toward the pro-birth crowd. However, many of these people continue to demand that women be treated like incubators and essentially punished for having sex, something which men are not receiving equal actions. The party of “limited government” seems to want the government to insert themselves into the private and medical lives of women for a perceived morality that is ignored once a baby is born. The my care for the zygote, the embryo, but not the child. Because then, it’s a tax burden and “you should have thought of that before you had sex” or were raped, or for whatever reason. We are owed no explanation for why someone needs an abortion, and HIPPA shouldn’t allow us to worry about it anyway. It’s a gray area and I’d rather let the patient and their doctor deal with it, instead of a bunch of grandstanders who don’t actually care about the lives their bills affect.
IF you commit the homicide of a pregnant woman in Wyoming you WILL be charged with DOUBLE HOMICIDE. If a child is born in some states (not sure about WY) with fentanyl or methamphetamine in their bloodstream the mother will be charged of various crimes.
If an adult desires to smoke 10 packs of cigarettes a day and eat junk food I would not try to stop them from destroying their health. HOWEVER, if taxpayer dollars are used to subsidize the purchase of those cigarettes and junk food I say HANDS OFF my tax dollars.
If my tax dollars (Federal or State) are being used to shed innocent blood I say HANDS OFF. No matter how cleverly you word it, abortion is ending the pre born life of an innocent human being.
This bill had nothing to do with tax dollars. It would have banned private medical choices, which are none of your business.
Just out of curiosity, if you were to witness someone being abused or killed, would you remain quiet because it was none of your business or would you speak up to help?
You’re conflating completely different situations
Good on you, Gov. Gordon. Thank you for recognizing that the CHOICE for a woman’s body is only the woman’s regardless of what one’s own religious beliefs are. For all those that attempt to impose their beliefs on others, back off.
AGREED…. thank you Governor Gordon
Is it her body that’s removed/discarded during an abortion?
What about the rights of the innocent, unborn, human being? Half of those being slaughtered before birth will be born females and will have the right to manage their womb, and the decisions they make that effect their reproductive system. In my humble opinion after being on both sides of this hot button issue I’ve come to the realization that life is a right that should be paramount in a civilized society. Slaughtering innocent human beings before they’re ever able to speak a word in their own defense is barbaric.
America will be judged and soon for these atrocities. You cannot kill God’s creation and expect no punishment.
You can be fearful of the rapture and a second coming. But you can’t force others to be afraid of the fairy tales that you choose to believe.
The end is not nigh….
The ridiculous striking down of Roe has emboldened those that believe they can regulate wombs while de-regulating guns. The absolute glee that the members of the House Judiciary Committee took in making a bad bill much worse was appalling to behold.
Based on the retirements announced so far it is a flat guarantee that the next Legislature will be far worse than the one we just witnessed.
Good on Governor Gordon for reducing the amount of taxpayer waste in trying to support these bad bills in the legal system as he saved a great deal of money much to the chagrin of the legal community.
I look forward to the apoplexy coming from the Womb Management Caucus when the Wyoming Supreme Court rules those abortion laws to be in violation of our Constitutional rights.
The original Justices that passed Roe v Wade did so with a stipulation that if proof that the fetus could be scientifically proven to be a life( which it has) and feel pain (which it does) in the womb that their judgment should be overturned and the case reevaluated. That has been proven for over 30 years. But the judge’s recommendation were conveniently forgotten or ignored. Rov v Wade was decided upon without the facts we have today. A baby in the womb Ida life is alive and does feel pain.
Sorry but the Constitution and the Bill of Rights is pretty clear in what it is telling the American people. For instance the 3rd Amendment says the government cannot force a homeowner to house the military. So you are saying it is okay for the government to manage a womb but they cannot use your house.
Ridiculous…..
Plus the Roe decision also stated that many scholars thought that the decision concerning abortion should rest with the woman for the full term but the SCOTUS was too weak to take that stand.
Jo you have every right to believe in an imaginary being but I do not have to believe it and passing laws based on the interpreted values of some stone age goat herders should have gone the way of the Dodo. Alas the religious are determined to wreck our rights and this country.
The Declaration of Independence offers the guarantee of the right to “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” Life is first listed in this Declaration and obviously most important. Who is there to stand and speak for the rights of those unable to speak yet. I’m sure if you were able to ask the unborn you would come to a different conclusion. Please remember all who have exercised the Liberty to comment on this issue “Your mother was Pro Life.”
What a ridiculous slogan. Millions of parents are pro-choice.
More of your nonsense. The justices that ruled in favor of a woman’s right never said any such thing. On the other hand, the degenerate Alito in overturning Roe v. Wade quoted a 17th century witch hunter to justify his decision.
A fetus, yes. An embryo, no. Two different things. If you want to discuss a fetus then the law that stayed no abortion after the first trimester made sense. Work on reducing the time to 10 weeks ( when and embryo has changed to a fetus). The rest of this is ridiculous. Targets women, takes away their right to choose their healthcare, their voice. Takes away their ability to feel safe and so many other things.
Science states life begins at fertilization. There should be three humans involved in this decision. The two that procreated and the unborn human with fewer rights than a mass murderer according to our laws. The word “healthcare” doesn’t fit what’s actually happening in this situation.
Ummmm, can you give me yout peer reviewed source for this science.
I was not expecting this. Wonderful news, despite his half baked reasoning
A Baby in the womb will be killed every hour by chemical acid burning, dissection while still alive or forcing the body to reject the child. That is not wonderful news. It is horrible. If you support something you should know exactly what it is. Watch a video on an abortion and then support it. It is disgusting what we do to our children.
Thank you Governor! You are more progressive than most!
I’m squeamish about watching most surgical procedures. That would be a silly reason to outlaw them.