Manatee County to Explore Unprecedented Abortion Restrictions

BRADENTON – At Tuesday's meeting, first-term Manatee County Commissioner James Satcher got unanimous support from fellow board members to have the county attorney's office research a potential "heartbeat" ordinance that would severely limit access to medical abortions within the county.

Florida law currently limits abortions to the first 24-weeks after conception and no county or municipality has attempted to challenge that limit. In Florida, state statutes preempt local ordinances, but Satcher (R-Dist 1) says he wants to model the ordinance after one in Lubbock, Texas, and seek similar assistance from the Florida Legislature in allowing it to exceed state limits.

Lubbock’s ordinance, approved by voters after its council rejected it for fear of costly legal fights, actually bans abortion, though it acknowledges that penalties cannot be enforced without the United States Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. It also empowers private citizens to sue abortion providers or those who aid one.

Last month, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed a restrictive abortion bill into law that prevented abortions after a heartbeat can be detected, which often occurs in the embryonic stage before a woman even knows she’s pregnant. It is unique in that rather than the government enforcing the law, private citizens are empowered to sue the provider or anyone that helps a woman to get an abortion.

According to the Texas Tribune, "supporters of the bill hope this novel provision will trip up legal challenges to the legislation, as without state officials enforcing the ban, there will be nobody for pro-women's rights groups to sue." The state statute also allows those who donate to abortion providers to be sued by family members of the aborted fetus or embryo, expressed as "the unborn child’s mother, father, grandparents, siblings, and half-siblings." The law provides exceptions in the event that the mother’s health is endangered but not for victims of rape or incest.

The Texas law also specifically empowers municipal governments to enact laws that are stricter than the state statute. Satcher says he hopes to convince the Florida Legislature to enact a similar exemption and has already approached Florida Senator Jim Boyd and state rep Tommy Gregory.

In 2013, North Dakota became the first state to pass a heartbeat law, but it was ruled unconstitutional by the SCOTUS in 2015 under the precedent set by the landmark 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision of Roe v. Wade.

Lubbock’s law was not the first in Texas, however, it was the first in a city that actually had an abortion clinic. Planned Parenthood, which operates the facility, sued, claiming the ordinance was unconstitutional, in that it violated the provisions of Roe v. Wade. However, a federal judge dismissed the suit on June 2, citing a lack of jurisdiction.

Tuesday’s vote only authorizes the county attorney’s office to commit resources to research the legal potential for such a statute. Any such ordinance, once drafted, would have to go through the public hearing process and come back for a final vote. Commissioners Vanessa Baugh (R-Dist 5) and Kevin Van Ostenbridge (R-Dist 3) offered full-throated support for Satcher’s request. Even Reggie Bellamy, the board’s lone Democrat, was quick to lend his vote.

Republicans Misty Servia and Carol Whitmore could find themselves in a complicated political situation, should a draft proposal come to a vote before the board. Both are expected to face special-interest-backed primary challenges in 2022 and would be all but certain to face PAC-financed attack ads were they to vote against the measure.