NH House Votes to Cut Funding to Planned Parenthood
The New Hampshire House of Representatives voted Wednesday to eliminate state funding intended for Planned Parenthood or any other agencies providing elective abortions.
The bill (HB 228) was passed by a margin of 207 to 147, removing state-controlled family planning dollars from abortion providers. Under the bill, public and private entities that provide comprehensive health care to women and do not perform abortions will get first consideration for funding.
House Speaker Bill O'Brien said the House vote was reflective of how the American people feel about funding elective abortion.
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"The majority of people agree that, regardless of individual beliefs, taxpayers should not be forced to contribute to the largest abortion provider in America when so many are diametrically religiously and morally opposed to the practice of abortions," House Speaker Bill O'Brien said.
The Alliance Defense Fund's senior counsel, Mike Norton, applauded the decision.
"Every innocent life deserves to be protected. Taxpayer dollars should go toward helping and caring for the most vulnerable Americans, not killing them," Norton said. "New Hampshire taxpayers should not be forced to fund abortions."
The New Hampshire Executive Council filed a formal protest last month with the Department of Health and Human Services and the Government Accountability Office after the Obama administration awarded a non-competitive $1 million contract with Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, LifeSiteNews.com reported.
The Obama administration's funding action bypassed the state's earlier decision to reject the use of taxpayer money for Planned Parenthood.
Nine states (including New Hampshire) have successfully thwarted plans to give more than $61.7 million to Planned Parenthood, according to the pro-life group Susan B. Anthony List, which helped design the bill.
The group also applauded the legislators' action on Wednesday.
"The House-passed bill ensures that taxpayer funds are prioritized to entities dedicated to providing comprehensive health care to women, not abortion," said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBL List. "This is a great victory in what has become a nationwide battle to stop taxpayer funding of abortion providers such as Planned Parenthood."
ADF-allied attorney Michael Tierney in Manchester, N.H., added, "It is time to get New Hampshire taxpayers out of the abortion business. Planned Parenthood's business model is centered on abortion, and New Hampshire taxpayers want no part in it."
