The Virginia House of Delegates voted 66 to 32 in favor of a “personhood bill,” sponsored by Delegate Bob Marshall (R-Prince William), which states that life begins at conception and would give rights to a fertilized egg. The bill proposes to give “unborn children at every stage of development all the rights, privileges, and immunities […]
A group of high school female athletes won their Title IX class action lawsuit against Sweetwater Union High School District in California. In Ollier v. Sweetwater Union High School, et al., US Judge James Lorenz ruled that Castle Park High School’s athletic facilities and resources for male students were superior to those provided for female […]
Yesterday Washington Governor Chris Gregoire signed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in the state making Washington the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage. The bill passed the Washington House of Representatives by a vote of 55 to 43 and the state Senate by a vote of 28 to 21. Although the law is scheduled to […]
The teenage birthrate reached a 40 year low in 2008, according to a study, entitled “U.S. Teenage Pregnancies, Births and Abortions, 2008: National Trends by Age, Race and Ethnicity.” Teen pregnancy has declined by a rate of 42 percent since it peaked in 1990, according to a Guttmacher Institute study conducted by Kathryn Kost and […]
The US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear a lawsuit today concerning a legal challenge to Proposition 209, which bans state government institutions, including public colleges and universities, from considering race, sex or ethnicity in employment decisions of education admissions in the state of California. The lawsuit comes over 15 years after […]
Governor Christine Gregoire indicated that she plans to sign a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state of Washington on Monday, making Washington the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage. On Wednesday, the bill passed the Washington House of Representatives by a vote of 55 to 43. Last week, the Washington state Senate voted […]
Reproductive health advocates are responding to comments made this week by Anthony Picarello, general counsel to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Arguing for an even more extreme exemption for religious organizations, Picarello said, “If I quit this job and opened a Taco Bell, I’d be covered by the mandate,” citing that mandating birth control […]
Late last week, a bill that would enable state-funded private adoption agencies in Virginia to refuse placements on the basis of their religious or moral beliefs, including banning placements with same-sex couples passed the state House of Delegates by a vote of 71 to 28. The Virginia Senate Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee also endorse […]
Yesterday Rick Santorum won the Minnesota and Colorado caucuses, as well as a nonbinding Missouri primary. All three races are considered largely symbolic given that no delegates were determined for the states last night. These are the first victories for Santorum since the Iowa caucuses on January 3. Rick Santorum has been under fire for […]
A three judge panel of the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco just decided (2-1) that Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage in California, violates the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution. The Court upheld Judge Vaughn Walker’s 2010 decision to strike down Proposition 8, with Judge Stephen Reinhardt writing, “Although […]
The Health and Human Services Committee of the South Dakota state House voted against a bill that would have banned crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) from engaging in false advertising. The law would have prevented CPCs from falsely advertising that they provide abortion services. Lawmakers argued that the law was unnecessary since the state already has […]
US District Judge Ronald Leighton heard closing arguments last week in a lawsuit concerning a law requiring that pharmacists sell emergency contraception. Washington state law mandates that pharmacists stock and provide their patients with medicines that they medically need. Nevertheless, pharmacists may be permitted to request that another pharmacist at the same location provide the […]
The Huffington Post reports that Karen Handel, vice president of the Susan G. Komen Foundation for the Cure, was largely responsible for the organization’s since-reversed decision to stop awarding grants to Planned Parenthood Affiliates. Handel is known for having expressed her strongly anti-abortion views during her campaign for governor of Georgia. A source told the […]
The Susan G. Komen Foundation for the Cure issued a statement today indicated that it would continue to provide grants to Planned Parenthood affiliates for breast cancer screenings, treatments, and education after announcing earlier this week that it would cease providing such grants. The Komen Foundation stated, “We want to apologize to the American public […]
Yesterday the Virginia Senate Committee on Education and Health voted against a bill that would have banned abortions at 20 weeks and would impose criminal penalties on doctors. The bill is based on the unfounded notion that the fetus can feel pain at this point in the pregnancy. The American College of Gynecology refutes assertions […]
The Washington state Senate voted 28 to 21 this week to pass a bill legalizing same-sex marriage, with four Republicans voting in support of the bill. The bill could go to the state House as early as next week, where it is expected to pass. Governor Chris Gregoire (D) has indicated that she will sign […]
The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2011 (VAWA) was voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee this morning on a party-line vote of 10-8. All Democrats voted to move the bill to the Senate floor for a vote and all Republicans voted no. Although Republican Judiciary Committee Members voted against sending the bill to […]
The US Departments of Labor and the Treasury announced, following the President’s State of the Union Address, two executive actions to help Americans save for retirement and to plan for longevity, as well as to increase transparency regarding their 401K plan options. According to the Departments of Labor and the Treasury, the executive actions are […]
Yesterday the Susan G. Komen Foundation for the Cure announced that, in accordance with its new policies, it will no longer award grants to Planned Parenthood affiliates to conduct breast cancer screenings, education, and treatment. Anti-abortion groups have criticized and threatened the Susan G. Komen Foundation for providing approximately $600,000 annually to 19 Planned Parenthood […]
The US Department of Labor, in partnership with the National Equal Pay Task Force, announced that it will launch a new Equal Pay App Challenge, to encourage web developers to create a software application to educate users about the pay gap and work to eliminate it. The winners of the challenge will be announced on […]
