Latest news with #MidwestMarchforLife
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Proposed tax credit boost may be lucrative for Missouri anti-abortion centers, donors
Anti-abortion advocates gathered at the Midwest March for Life in front of the Missouri State Capitol on May 1, 2024, in Jefferson City (Anna Spoerre/Missouri Independent). When the Missouri House signed off on a $1.3 billion tax cut package last week, it included a provision creating a 100% tax credit for donations to pregnancy resource centers, maternity homes and diaper banks. The credits — allowing up to $50,000 in donations to be accepted in place of taxes owed — are seen by supporters as a way to increase aid to pregnant women in need following Missourians' decision to legalize abortion last November. 'There's no time in the history of Missouri that I can recall where there's a better time to support life,' state Rep. Brad Christ, a Republican from St. Louis, said during a committee hearing last month. But pregnancy resource centers have proven controversial around the country, accused of providing women with inaccurate medical information in an effort to discourage them from seeking abortions. And critics have raised concerns that allowing Missourians to satisfy their entire tax bill by donating to anti-abortion organizations could create significant budget uncertainty. 'Even if you view this totally in isolation and don't pay any mind through the mission of the organizations at hand here, this is egregious policy' said Carl Davis, research director at the left-leaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. 'There's no reason to do it this way.' The tax credit for pregnancy resource centers was set at 70% in 2021, up from 50%. Maternity homes also currently sit at 70%, and diaper banks are at 50%. Following the 2022 change, the Pregnancy Help Center of Central Missouri in Jefferson City saw a $100,000 increase in tax credit-eligible donations, its executive director, Leslie Kerns, told the House special committee on tax reform. The original bill's sponsor, state Rep. Christopher Warwick, a Republican from Bolivar, did not respond to an interview request, but during a House hearing he described the legislation as 'a simple bill' that redirects the additional 30% the government has been getting to women in need. 'We need to keep government out of a lot of things, and this is one of them,' Warwick said during the hearing in which he was asked if he would include a provision mandating oversight of how the donations are spent. 'We need to be able to make sure that donors are getting their resources directly to those that need it, and when we're talking about pregnancies and women who are looking for help, this bill allows that and puts donors right in front of those who need it most.' A number of tax credit programs in Missouri are built to incentivize donations to certain causes, including the Developmental Disability Care Provider Tax Credit, Domestic Violence Shelter or Rape Crisis Center Tax Credit and 'Champion for Children' tax credit. But the credit to pregnancy resource centers tends to get the most attention because of its involvement in Missouri's longstanding battle over abortion. Pregnancy resource centers are not medical facilities but rather provide services including free pregnancy tests, prenatal vitamins, parenting classes, ultrasounds and counseling. While 100% tax credits — meaning the donor reduces their tax bill the exact amount they gave — aren't unheard of, they are usually capped. What's different about this year's proposal is that while tax credit claims remain capped at $50,000 per individual contribution, there would not be a cap at the aggregate level, meaning there is no limit to how many people can claim credits. Without an aggregate cap, it would take 200 people donating $50,000 to cut into Missouri's budget by $10 million. If 1,000 people took advantage of the full credit it would cost the state $50 million. The state's total tax revenue in the most recent fiscal year was about $14.2 billion. Missouri Republicans take victory lap as legislative session heads into its home stretch Sam Lee finds any concerns about the fiscal impact overblown. The longtime anti-abortion activist and lobbyist pointed to a January 2024 tax credit analysis by the Missouri Department of Social Services concluding that for every dollar redeemed by taxpayers with the tax credit, the state saves $1.77. The report explained the savings by concluding the donations assist women with unplanned pregnancies 'who may have, otherwise, accessed state assistance.' Last fiscal year, about $7.5 million was claimed under this tax credit. Lee noted there is no aggregate cap for pregnancy resource center tax credits under the current law and donations still remain far below what's directed to other programs that do have a cap, like the private school tax credit program MoScholars. That tax credit program is set at 100% and draws from general fund dollars to pay for private school tuition. It's capped at $75 million annually. But Davis, with the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, said this year's pregnancy resource center proposal has the potential to create significant budget uncertainty because, unlike MoScholars, it would allow for more than just cash donations to the centers. Stocks, bonds and property could qualify as well, which Davis said could lead to a 'glut of donations' to centers as donors use the program to avoid paying capital gains taxes. Davis recently published a brief laying out his apprehensions after a ProPublica story alerted him to the legislation. The credit for stock or other assets that have appreciated in value would be for the market value at the time of the donation. If sold for the same amount, the owner would pay federal tax on the profit of up to 20% as well as state income tax of up to 4.7%, depending on income level. 'What I'm concerned about is that it would be exceptionally easy for taxpayers to pair this 100% match with avoidance of capital gains tax,' he said. 'And then you end up with this scenario of basically personal profiteering off a tax shelter that would be set up in the state.' Davis worries without an aggregate cap on donations in Missouri, the 100% credit could inspire people to game the system. 'This is not good policy. This is not neutral policy. This is very distortionary,' he said. 'It encourages opportunists to come out of the woodwork and to take part in this, not because they care about the cause at the heart of this bill at all, but just because they want to make a buck for themselves.' Pregnancy resource centers, frequently affiliated with religious organizations and sometimes situated right next to the state's handful of Planned Parenthood clinics, are often criticized for their efforts to dissuade or even hinder women from accessing abortions. Supporters say the centers help women uncertain about continuing a pregnancy with the resources to feel more secure in the decision. Kerns, with the Jefferson City center, said during the hearing that her center, like all pregnancy resource centers, is not allowed to perform, induce or refer for abortions. She said they have women mark where they're at on a 'decision guide' to see if they're 'abortion-minded.' If they show an interest in abortion, they're given an information sheet about abortion that includes the procedure's risks. In many cases, however, the information women are provided at pregnancy resource centers is inaccurate and skewed to influence their decision, said Michele Landeau, chief operating officer of Hope Clinic, an Illinois abortion clinic across the river from St. Louis. 'We see a lot of people who have visited these anti abortion centers that receive these tax credits, who are given misinformation,' Landeu said. 'And who essentially end up delaying their care because of the misinformation that they receive from these centers.' Landeau said about half of Hope Clinic's patients are from Missouri. Patients have told her that pregnancy resource centers gave them incorrect gestational ages or told them incorrectly that they weren't allowed to travel for abortions. 'This harm will not only continue, but it will be uplifted, essentially, by these additional tax credits,' said Landeau, who lives in Missouri. For the 2025 fiscal year, there are 82 pregnancy resource centers eligible to benefit from the current tax credit. There are 20 maternity homes and six diaper banks. Lee believes the legalization of abortion in Missouri last fall was a catalyst in the renewed desire by lawmakers to support pregnancy resource centers. A Jackson County judge recently struck down several of the state's abortion regulations, including a law that patients must wait 72 hours before going in for an initial appointment and actually undergoing an abortion. Lee said this puts added urgency on pregnancy resource center staff. 'They realize they need to have staff available, if not 24/7, at least every day to respond to women who in the near future could get an abortion that day,' Lee said. 'And that's not been the situation in Missouri for years and years.' Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe proposed a state budget increase of $4 million to federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds that goes to Alternatives to Abortion. It would earmark $12.6 million for programs that provide services, including counseling, to women 'at or below 185% of the federal poverty level, to assist in carrying their unborn child to term rather than having an abortion.' A 2004 study of more than 1,200 women who had abortions found that 73% said they decided to undergo the procedure in part because they could not afford to have a baby, according to a study by the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive rights research group. The 'Turnaway Study,' a widely-referenced piece of research published by Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health, found that women who were denied abortions, many of whom were already mothers, experienced an increase in household poverty over the next four years. It also found that children born following a denied abortion were more likely to live below the federal poverty line than those born to women who previously had an abortion. The anti-abortion movement in Missouri is not solely focused on regulating the procedure, Lee said. Efforts to help reduce abortions have taken a number of shapes through the years, including by extending post-partum Medicaid coverage. The 100% tax credits, he said, are one more piece. 'There's just not one magic bullet here,' Lee said, 'which will reduce abortions.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Anti-abortion advocates split over push to renew Missouri ban with rape, incest exceptions
Students hold up anti-abortion signs at the Midwest March for Life on May 1 at the Missouri State Capitol (Anna Spoerre/Missouri Independent). While Missouri House Republicans have rallied behind a proposed constitutional amendment that would ban abortion but allow some exceptions for survivors of rape and incest, a similar proposal in the Senate received push-back Wednesday from a Republican lawmaker and anti-abortion activists. The Senate Families, Seniors and Health Committee on Wednesday heard testimony on a proposed amendment filed by state Sen. Adam Schnelting, a Republican from St. Charles. Similar legislation was filed in the House by GOP state Rep. Melanie Stinnett of Springfield. CONTACT US Both proposals seek to revive Missouri's near-total ban on abortion with one consession: an exception for victims of rape or incest who seek an abortion in the first 12 weeks gestation but who first report the assault to police. Both also ban gender-affirming health care for minors and allow abortions during an ectopic pregnancy While much of the opposition to Stinnett's bill during a House hearing earlier this month came from abortion-rights advocates, Schnelting's bill drew fire from fierce opponents of abortion. 'I appreciate your candor and your heart's desire to do what you think is right. I cannot in good conscience do this,' state Sen. Mike Moon, an Ash Grove Republican, told Schnelting during Wednesday's hearing, later adding: 'If we think because we elected a new president, that all our troubles are over, you better start thinking again. Why are we so quick to concede? We should mount an army, and yes, I'm telling my plans to those who will oppose us.' Moon is sponsoring his own proposed constitutional amendment which would define 'person' as 'every human being with a unique DNA code regardless of age, including every in utero human child at every stage of biological development from the moment of conception until birth.' 'Nothing in this constitution secures or protects a right to abortion or requires the funding of an abortion,' the legislation continues. The committee held a public hearing on Moon's bill on Wednesday as well. The divide among Republicans highlights the ongoing moral debate within the anti-abortion movement between banning every abortion and banning most abortions. The Rev. Brian Davis, a Missouri pastor who came to Jefferson City on Wednesday to oppose Schnelting's bill, called the rape and incest exceptions 'a failed attempt to manage evil.' Rebecca Keasling, an anti-abortion activist from Michigan, pleaded for lawmakers to oppose the exception for rape and incest survivors. 'It's completely demoralizing to have a legislature target you,' said Keasling, who told lawmakers she was conceived when her mother was raped and born following a number of failed abortions attempts. Keasling previously attempted to sue Iowa over its heartbeat ban, calling that state's rape and incest exception 'discriminatory.' She suggested Schneliting at least add a severability clause, which she said would allow someone to ask the federal court to remove the exception by citing it as a violation of the 14th Amendment. Ron Calzone, director of the nonprofit Missouri First, also opposed Schnelting's bill, saying there's still time to find another solution. 'It's too early,' he told lawmakers. 'Let's use some of that same tenacity for a full repeal.' Missouri 'born-alive' bill could open door to abortion medication lawsuits Moon's legislation proposing fetal personhood was presented Wednesday as the 'pro-life' alternative. Under the amendment, Moon said, a cause of action could be brought in defense of a developing fetus. Asked if he supports criminal penalties for those who get abortions, Moon said anyone who commits a crime should be held accountable. State Sen. Maggie Nurrenbern, a Kansas City Democrat, shared her own story with the committee of miscarrying in her home the evening before her 12-week obstetrics appointment. 'Lots of women miscarry every single day. My question has always been, how would somebody know if I induced that abortion or it was spontaneous? Because there's nothing in my system that would tell somebody that,' she said. 'I'm very concerned of what this would do to target women, to criminalize women. Moon said he didn't have a full answer, but he noted that when someone is accused of something, it's typically followed by a trial 'and hopefully that trial is complete.' Planned Parenthood on its website states that in most cases, medical professionals cannot test to determine whether or not someone took abortion medication. Linda Martin said having access to an abortion 37 years ago was a pivotal moment in her life. She was 9 weeks into her first pregnancy when she learned the fetus was nonviable. Martin said she had the choice of going home and miscarrying naturally, or having an abortion. She and her husband chose the latter, with guidance from her doctor. 'The mystery of life is so complex, it just cannot be regulated,' said Martin, a voter in Schnelting's district, which sits in St. Charles County where 53% of voters approved last year's abortion rights amendment, known as Amendment 3. She said it's 'insulting' to insinuate that Missourians didn't know what they were voting for and 'manipulative' to introduce a new amendment. Schnelting during Wednesday's hearing said his amendment serves to clarify the state's abortion laws, pointing to the millions of dollars in ads paid for by the Amendment 3 campaign, which he said misled voters. State Rep. Patty Lewis, a Democrat from Kansas City, said while sitting on the senate's new government efficiency committee, she's seen hundreds of letters from Missourians who see the attempt to roll back Amendment 3 as 'a waste of taxpayer dollars.' 'We're not undoing the will of voters,' Schnelting said. 'Only the voters can undo their own will.' Any amendment approved by the legislature would likely appear on the ballot in 2026, or sooner as part of a special election called by the governor. In November, 51.6% of Missouri voters overturned a near-total abortion ban by codifying the right to reproductive health care, including abortion up until the point of fetal viability, in the state constitution. Only one legal abortion has happened in Missouri since Amendment 3 went into effect. Planned Parenthood is currently suing the state, hoping to permanently remove dozens of 'targeted regulation of abortion providers' laws that they say hinder their ability to re-start the procedure across the state. That case is ongoing, but a victory for Planned Parenthood could ultimately make Missouri an access state for much of the south, where abortion remains largely illegal. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Opposition to Schnelting's bill from Democrats also largely centered around the rape and incest reporting requirements. 'Abortion is a medical treatment, not a political football, nor a religious dictum,' said Diane Light, a Missouri physician who said she worried about tasking doctors with verifying police reports prior to an abortion. Nurrenbernm said she found it compelling that the Missouri House earlier recently approved a bill that would extend the civil statute of limitations for survivors of childhood sexual abuse from age 31 to age 41. But at the same time, some of the same GOP lawmakers are discussing limiting survivors seeking an abortion to 12 weeks to report the traumatic event. 'Shouldn't there not be some kind of metric,' said state Sen. Jill Carter, a Republican from Granby. 'To ensure that those women who are going to go have an abortion are having an opportunity to meet the person who has perpetrated this crime against them, have their day in court.' Two out of every three sexual assaults are not reported to police, according to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network and the Bureau of Justice Statistics. In a research letter published last year in JAMA Internal Medicine, one group of researchers estimated that since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, more than 65,500 women and girls in the 14 states with abortion bans in place became pregnant after being raped. 'These exceptions are them trying to seem like they are compassionate,' said Erin Davis, who canvassed for Amendment 3 in St. Charles County over the summer on behalf of Abortion Action Missouri. 'But we know assault survivors have a hard time reporting.' Maggie Olivia, a senior policy manager with Abortion Action Missouri, said Wednesday's debate showed the determination of members of the anti-abortion movement in Missouri to punish those who access abortion care. 'It is clear from the hearing today that even if they were able to pass a resolution like (Schnelting's), that it wouldn't be enough,' Olivia said.' The anti-abortion movement won't stop at a second round vote by the people.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
