Will the Montana Abortion Ban become State Law?
Senate's Personhood Amendment may Never Become Part of Constitution
On February 26, 2009, the Montana Senate passed the Personhood Amendment, also known as Senate Bill 406. The bill defines a person as "a human being at all stages of human development of life, including the state of fertilization or conception, regardless of age, health, level of functioning, or condition of dependency."
Whether the legislation will actually become law still remains in question.
The Amendment May Be Stopped by the House or Governor
According to NARAL Pro-Choice America, the Montana Senate is anti-choice but the Montana House of Representatives is a mixture of pro-choice and anti-choice politicians. The Personhood Amendment needs 74 votes in the House in order to pass both chambers - a dauntingly large number. There is also the possibility that pro-choice Governor Brian Schweitzer could veto the bill before it becomes part of the state constitution. In 2000, Governor Schweitzer said on his website, "The Government should not intervene in a woman’s right to make health care decisions. Those decisions should be left up to the woman and her doctor." Even if the Senate and the House both pass the legislation, it could still be vetoed by Gov. Schweitzer, overturned by a legal battle or stopped by grassroots resistance at the voter level.
The Amendment Would Face a Legal Battle
This is not the first time the anti-choice movement has tried to put personhood legislation or an abortion ban on the ballot. In 2008, there was attempt to put CI-100, an amendment to the state constitution to define personhood as beginning at conception, on the November ballot. While the anti-choice movement tried to gather signatures in support of CI-100, more than 25 local organizations and 350 volunteers effectively prevented the amendment from being put of the ballot.
Even if the abortion ban is passed by the Senate, the House of Representatives and the voters, it still would most likely face a court battle. It is the possibility of a court battle over personhood legislation that has some anti-choice groups reluctant to support the amendment. When confronted with CI-100, the Montana Catholic Conference declined to support the bill. One of their reasons was the damage the possible legal battle could do to their movement in the long run. In 2008, the Montana Catholic Conference said, "Legal experts agree that the current Supreme Court would, at best, decline to hear the case, and at worst, use the opportunity to reaffirm the right to abortion yet another time. The more times the Supreme Court’s abortion decisions are affirmed, the more difficult it becomes to obtain further hearings from the Court and to expect decisions to end abortion."
Grassroots Resistance Could Defeat It at the Polls
Without the support of some anti-choice organizations, like the Montana Catholic Conference, it is less likely that the ban will successfully become part of Montana's constitution. When it comes to a grassroots effort, the pro-choice movement in Montana is very active. During the 2008 election season, NARAL Pro-Choice Montana says they had 32,600 pro-choice voter guides, reaching over 35,000 pro-choice voters, and made 3,700 phone calls to pro-choice voters. They also reached out to students by distributing 250 voter guides and 150 candidate-specific postcards on campuses and had over 300 students participating in Students for Choice in one month alone. If there are not anti-choice organizations, like the Montana Catholic Conference, willing to put in a similar and extensive grassroots effort then the abortion ban could be defeated at the ballot box by voters.
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