Evert Nelson/The Topeka Capital-Journal via AP
TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansas' governor on Friday rejected a proposed ban on gender-affirming treatment for minors, a measure that would require more reporting from abortion providers, and vetoed a “vague” bill that would have made it a crime to force someone to have an abortion. abortion.
Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's actions have set off a series of confrontations with the Republican-majority Legislature over these issues. The bill appeared to have the two-thirds majority needed in both chambers to override a veto, but Republican leaders' success may depend on how many lawmakers are absent from the House on any given day.
The two-term governor is a strong supporter of abortion and LGBTQ+ rights. Republicans control Congress and have joined other Republican lawmakers across the country in rolling back transgender rights.
But Kansas has been an outlier on abortion among states with Republican legislatures. That's because the Kansas Supreme Court declared in 2019 that the state constitution protects abortion rights, a position that was decisively confirmed in a statewide vote in August 2022.
“Voters do not want politicians standing between doctors and patients by interfering with personal medical decisions,” Kelly wrote in his message vetoing the abortion reporting bill.
Kelly allowed a Republican proposal on a social issue highlighted by Republicans across the country to become law without his signature. Starting July 1, pornographic websites will have to verify that Kansas visitors are adults. Kansas will follow Texas and several other states, despite privacy concerns and concerns about how broadly the law could be applied.
Rejecting an attempt to have Kansas join at least two dozen other states in banning or limiting gender reassignment therapy for minors, Kelly argued that the ban “tramples parental rights” and targets a “small group.”
“If Congress had paid this much attention to the remaining 99.8 percent of students, we would have the best schools on Earth,” she wrote.
A Kansas bill opposing gender-confirming treatment would ban surgery, hormone treatments, puberty blockers and limit treatment to minors to therapy.
“I hope this is over at least this year. They decided not to waste anyone's time anymore,” said Jenna Bellemire, a transgender student at the University of Kansas who learned of the veto.
The bill also requires the state to revoke the licenses of doctors who violate the ban and prohibit recipients of state funds for the treatment of children or state employees who work with children from advocating for gender-affirming treatment. It would prohibit the use of state funds and property for such treatment, which would limit the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas.
Supporters of the bill argue that the ban would protect children from experimental, dangerous and potentially permanent treatments. They cited a recent decision by Britain's National Health Service to no longer routinely cover such treatment. “The radical left is controlling her veto pen,” Senate President Ty Masterson, a Wichita-area Republican, said of Kelly.
“It is clear that Laura Kelly will be on the wrong side of history by recklessly rejecting common sense protections for Kansas minors,” said Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican.
But the state's ban runs counter to recommendations from major U.S. medical groups, including the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Many medical experts also say that providing such care makes transgender children less likely to feel depressed or suicidal.
Last year, Republican lawmakers overrode Kelly's veto to ban transgender girls and women from participating in K-12 and college sports teams and end the state's legal recognition of transgender people's gender identity. Because of the latter law, Kansas no longer allows transgender people to change the gender listing on their driver's license or birth certificate.
Republican lawmakers have also continued to press for new legislation on abortion, arguing that voters still support “reasonable” regulations and supports for pregnant women and new mothers despite the August 2022 vote.
Danielle Underwood, spokeswoman for Kansans for Life, the state's most influential opposition group, said “Governor 'Kelly' is demonstrating how radical he is on abortion and how he lacks basic compassion for women who are forced to have abortions or who are trafficked.” “We showed it again,” he said. -The abortion group said in a statement:
The anti-coercion bill would impose up to a year in prison or a fine of up to $10,000 on anyone found guilty of using physical or financial threats to force a woman or girl to have an abortion. In her veto message, Kelly noted that threatening others is already a crime.
Critics said the provision was written broadly enough to apply to a spouse threatening divorce or a live-in boyfriend threatening to leave unless his partner gets an abortion.
Reporting The bill would require health care providers to ask patients why they want to terminate a pregnancy and report that information to the state health department. Kelly and other critics argue it's invasive and unnecessary, but supporters argue the country needs better data on why women and girls have abortions to help shape policy.
“These stigmatizing bills were not designed to improve the health and well-being of Kansans,” said Emily Wales, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Plains, which operates three clinics that provide abortions in Kansas. “They just wanted to shame reproductive care.”