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Texas lawmakers have increased funding for pregnancy centers, adoption agencies, and maternity homes to $200 million this year and passed legislation that ensures the funding won’t be used for abortions.
Texas Right to Life reported in a June 17 news release that the funds help the Thriving Texas Families program equip pro-life ministries and nonprofits to provide support for women and their children, born and unborn. Resources like adoption, counseling, child care, and housing placement assistance, help women find alternatives to abortion.
Texas Right to Life stated that it fought for the state legislature to increase funding to a goal of $210 million this year, especially as Texas’ birth rates are rising and the demand for pro-life resources is reportedly at a record high.
According to the release, lawmakers had initially planned to decrease the funding for the program to $140 million. However, the Senate then decided to allocate $180 million to the program’s pro-life work.
The release states that three Republican representatives added amendments, seeking to enable the program to meet its funding goal of $210 million, but those also created a small issue with passing the legislation.
“Since the House and Senate had different amounts in their bills, a small group of lawmakers worked out a compromise,” Texas Right to Life reported. “They chose the Senate’s lower amount in the state budget (Senate Bill 1), but they added more money in a separate policy (House Bill 500), which is used to cover extra needs before the main budget kicks in.”
The extra funds from the new policy provide another $20 million, giving the pro-life program a total of $200 million.
Texas Right to Life also noted that lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1388 to regulate which organizations and agencies can receive the funds, and “will make clear that only life-affirming providers can be part of the program,” Texas Right to Life stated.
However, the pro-life group noted that there are other important issues yet to be resolved and addressed. According to Texas Right to Life, legislators reportedly did not address a move the commission made earlier this year that changed the way most pro-life nonprofits report their services and get reimbursed, which made it difficult for small pregnancy centers to participate.
Texas Right to Life also criticized officials for not acting against mail-order abortion pills, stating that “House leaders killed a bill (Senate Bill 2880) that would have cracked down on the 19,000 abortion pills smuggled into Texas each year—leaving a gaping hole in Texas’s Pro-Life protections.”
The group added, “While the increased funding is a great step forward, it’s only one piece of the puzzle.”
