State vs. the Supes
Pols set to beef up Constitution after court rulings
ALBANY — New York is taking the first step toward enshrining abortion access and LGBTQ rights in the state’s constitution following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The Democrat-led Legislature began the process of passing an amendment Friday to expand the state’s constitutional protections during a special session initially called by Gov. Hochul to strengthen the state’s gun laws in response to a separate Supreme Court ruling.
“In today’s session not only are we restoring the basic tenets of public safety, but we’re upholding the core belief that every citizen, regardless of their identity, is entitled to equal treatment under the law,” Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) said from the floor of the chamber. “We are running out of time to codify these human rights before the Supreme Court completely invalidates them.”
The proposal amends the state constitution’s Equal Protection Amendment by prohibiting discrimination based on national origin, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex, including reproductive healthcare and autonomy as well as “pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes.”
The Senate approved the measure 49-14 just after 11 a.m. with six Republicans joining the Democratic majority. The Assembly was scheduled to take up the amendment later in the day.
Once passed in both chambers, the constitutional change will have to be approved again during the next legislative session, which begins in January, before going before voters.
In a 6-3 decision last week, the conservative majority of the nation’s highest court overturned Roe and rolled back 50 years of federal abortion rights. Dozens of conservative-led states have already moved to restrict or ban access to the procedure.
Hochul, during an afternoon press conference at the Capitol, said the amendment will “protect reproductive health in New York for generations to come.”
Abortion rights in the Empire State are already protected under state law thanks to the Reproductive Health Act.
The 2019 measure codified Roe into state law and also allows a pregnancy to be terminated after 24 weeks if a woman’s life is in danger or the fetus is not viable. It also allows a licensed or certified health care practitioner to perform abortions.
Hochul and lawmakers last month ended the regular legislative session with a flurry of bills buttressing the state’s abortion laws and enacting stronger legal protections for service providers.
One of the new laws protects abortion providers from extradition, arrest and legal proceedings in other states, and bars medical misconduct charges for performing reproductive health care.
Earlier Friday, Hochul was among nine Democratic governors who met virtually with President Biden to discuss ways states can protect abortion rights and access.
“I share the public outrage of this extremist court that’s committed to moving America backward, with fewer rights and less autonomy,” Biden said before warning that Republicans could push for a federal abortion ban should they win majorities in Congress in the upcoming midterm elections.
Supporters of New York’s constitutional change argue that more needs to be done to send a message to other states where abortion access is already being limited.
“Equal rights are for everyone,” said Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan).
“The 1930s-era equal rights language in our State Constitution is long overdue for an update.
“Women have waited far too long to be included, but so have LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, Latinx people, and everyone who has faced discrimination based on characteristics that are beyond their control.”
The measure, which Krueger has sponsored and championed for years, failed to come up for a vote during the regular legislative session in part due to concerns that it could infringe upon religious rights.
Attorney General Letitia James assured legislative leaders earlier this week that there did not appear to be any legal concerns about the amendment, the Albany Times Union reported.
Still, the New York State Catholic Conference pushed back on the amendment Friday, issuing an 11th-hour memorandum of opposition.
“The amendment is gratuitous, as abortion is already legal in New York with virtually no restrictions,” the group wrote. “New York should stop promoting abortion as a woman’s best and only choice.”