House overrides Gov. Kelly’s abortion bill vetoes

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - The Kansas House has overrode two vetoes Governor Laura Kelly had issued on bills that put more regulations on abortion.

Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins announced on Wednesday, April 26, that the legislative body has overridden a handful of vetoes from Governor Laura Kelly.

House leaders overrode Gov. Kelly’s veto of the passage of House Bill 2313, more commonly known as the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. This bill would require healthcare providers to be present at an attempted abortion to give the fetus care regardless of the circumstance it was delivered.

The bill originally passed with an 88-34 vote, which was enough to override the veto.

“The Kansas House delivered a blow to Governor Kelly and the most radical in the pro-abortion movement, with a successful vote to overturn her veto of the Born Alive Infants Protection Act,” said Speaker Hawkins. “The Governor said in her statement that this does not happen. There are abortion survivors walking among us today that prove otherwise. All infants in Kansas will now, by law, receive the same standard of care across the board no matter the intention or circumstances surrounding their birth.”

Also on Tuesday, the House overrode a veto Kelly made on a bill that will bar abortion providers from purchasing health insurance from the state’s Health Care Stabilization Fund.

“Today, Kansas House Republicans successfully voted to override the Governor’s veto and support the will of the People, who overwhelmingly oppose taxpayer funding of abortions. This necessary update to current law closes the loophole supported by Governor Kelly that allowed abortion providers to purchase insurance from the state’s Health Care Stabilization Fund.”

Hawkins also indicated that the House overrode Kelly’s veto of the Women’s Right to Know Act which requires abortion providers to notify patients that the effects of a medication abortion could be reversible.

“It’s estimated that about 4,000 births worldwide and about 2,000 births in the United States have occurred as a result of the clinical use of progesterone, a naturally occurring pregnancy hormone after a woman has taken one pill of the chemical abortion regimen,” Hawkins noted. “Today House Republicans successfully voted to override the Governor’s veto of the Women’s Right to Know Act, empowering women in this incredibly vulnerable position and providing them with all the medical information available.”

Lastly, the Representative said the House overrode Kelly’s veto of House Bill 2350, which would create the crimes of human smuggling and aggravated human smuggling as well as provide penalties for each.

“Until now, Kansas had no statute to allow law enforcement to criminally charge individuals caught smuggling persons within our state. Today, Kansas House Republicans successfully overrode the Governor’s veto and made human smuggling a criminal offense, therefore, making a major step toward protecting the victims of human smuggling, which too often correlates to forced labor and sexual exploitation,” Hawkins concluded. “The bottom line is that if anyone, no matter who you are, knowingly transports, receives something in return for transporting, or knows the person they transport will be exploited, the smuggler deserves to be held accountable. This new law will now protect this vulnerable population which is often targeted with enticing and false promises for a better life.”

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