{"id":312300,"date":"2024-05-15T15:50:05","date_gmt":"2024-05-15T20:50:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=312300"},"modified":"2024-05-15T11:01:33","modified_gmt":"2024-05-15T16:01:33","slug":"kansas-governor-vetoes-prenatal-child-support-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/kansas-governor-vetoes-prenatal-child-support-bill\/","title":{"rendered":"Kansas governor Laura Kelly vetoes prenatal child support bill"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Kansas Governor Laura Kelly vetoed a bill Friday that would have allowed child support payments to apply to preborn children.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Senate Bill 425 would have amended a state statute to make \u201cunborn children\u201d part of the legal definition of a child, thereby mandating courts to consider medical and pregnancy-related expenses when determining child support obligations. Abortion advocates rallied against the measure on the basis that it gave the designation of personhood to preborn children, believing it to be a way to open the door to more pro-life laws. Lawmakers passed<\/a> the measure with a vote of 82-38 in the House and 25-12 in the Senate.<\/p>\n

Kelly, whom the AP notes<\/a> is a “strong supporter of abortion rights,” partially attributed her veto to the fact that a pro-life constitutional amendment which would have protected preborn children was rejected by voters in 2022.<\/p>\n

“This divisive legislation has broad and sweeping implications that undermine the will of the majority of Kansans who voted overwhelmingly in 2022 to protect the constitutional rights of women to make decisions about pregnancy,” Kelly said in a statement<\/a>. “This is another blatant attempt by extreme politicians in the Legislature to take more control over women and their families\u2019 personal, private medical decisions.”<\/p>\n