A week after the U.S. Supreme Court voted to strike down Roe v. Wade, ending a nearly 50-year precedent, several governors are moving to protect abortion rights in their states.
On Friday, New York is expected to pass a constitutional amendment guaranteeing access to abortion during a special session initially called to rewrite state gun permit laws in the wake of another Supreme Court decision that rolled back the state's concealed carry restrictions.
The state legislature is slated to vote on the abortion and gun bills on Friday, with Gov. Kathy Hochul expected to sign them into law once passed later that day.
"We refuse to stand idly by while the Supreme Court attacks the rights of New Yorkers," Hochul said on Twitter.
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In neighboring New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy is scheduled to sign into law Friday afternoon abortion bills that protect health care providers and out-of-state patients. One bill bans the extradition of people who get or perform abortions in New Jersey to states that criminalize the procedure, and the second prohibits state agencies from assisting in investigations that release their information to other states.
The bills swiftly passed the state legislature in the wake of the Supreme Court decision impacting Roe.
"The Legislature just sent two bills to my desk to make New Jersey a safe haven for anyone seeking an abortion and for health care professionals providing them," Murphy said on Twitter Wednesday. "I will sign this legislation into law. The women of our country can't wait."
The laws follow other actions by the state to protect abortion rights in anticipation of Roe falling. In January, Murphy signed a bill that codified the right to an abortion into state law.
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In Connecticut, a new law strengthening abortion rights goes into effect on Friday. The law, which was signed by the governor in May, protects medical providers and patients seeking abortion care who may be traveling to Connecticut from states that have outlawed abortion. It also expands abortion access in Connecticut by expanding the type of practitioners eligible to perform certain abortion-related care.
As the state becomes a "safe harbor" state for abortion care, Lamont also issued an open letter Friday urging out-of-state businesses to relocate to Connecticut, "a state that supports the rights of women and whose actions and laws are unwavering in support of tolerance and inclusivity."
"With the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, there are many states across the country outlawing a woman's right to make her own reproductive choices. Not here in Connecticut. Not as long as I'm governor," Lamont said in a video message, asking businesses to consider the state as a place where their employees and customers may better identify with its values.