The 2006 Rhode Island legislative session started in January and continued through June. Although Rhode Island is an overwhelming 63% pro-choice state (SurveyUSA poll, September 2005), the Rhode Island State House is a hotbed of anti-choice support, with an anti-choice House, Senate and Governor. Indeed, anti-choice bill sponsor, Senator Leo Blais, R. Dist. 24 of Coventry summarized it during anti-choice bill debate on the RI Senate floor last June 29, 2005, "They [pro-choice supporters] are scared to death that Rhode Island will be the first state to over Roe v. Wade."

Two anti-choice bills go to hearing in the House. Both H6795, the so-called "Women's Right to Know Act", and H6791, the "Forced Abortion" bill went to hearing before the House Health, Education, and Welfare committee on April 6, 2006. H6792 mandates a 24-hour waiting period, after review of state produced and taxpayer financed biased "counseling " materials, before a woman can access abortion services. Last year the Senate version of this bill, S0275, sponsored by Senator Stephan Alves, D. West Warwick, was voted off the Senate floor by a 27-9 vote, and sent over to the House where it died. In 2005, 2004, and 2001, this bill went to hearing before House Judiciary. Each year it died in committee. According the bill sponsor, Rhode Island women apparently need the RI General Assembly to require that they think longer about their decision to access an abortion:

"The point [of making women wait] is having an appropriate amount of time to think about it. And I know the next thing out of your mouth is going to be: 'Don't you think they've [women] already thought about it?' And that's debatable." Representative Arthur Corvese, D. Dist. 55 of North Providence, during the House Judiciary hearing, April 12, 2005.

H6791, so-called "Forced Abortion" bill, again sponsored by Rep. Corvese, assumes that women who have abortions are often "forced" or "required " to do so, and allows for civil action to be taken against doctors and counselors. Both the "Women's Right to Know" and "Forced Abortion" bills remain in House HEW. Neither has yet to receive an HEW committee vote or Senate hearing thus far in the 2006 session. To read Rhode Island’s informed consent for abortion laws, visit www.rilin.state.ri.us/Statutes/TITLE23/23-4.7.

Comprehensive Sex Education v. Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage battle produced a victory this spring for teen health. RI Education Commissioner, Peter McWalters, banned abstinence-only-until-marriage programs or accompanying materials from RI public schools, as it fails to meet RI Health Education Standards. Please click on the March 28th GetActive message at the bottom of this page to read full advisory and related press. For more information on RI Education Health Standards, visit www.ridoe.net. For more information on teen sexuality and health, visit www.advocatesforyouth.org or www.teenpregnancy.org.

Supreme Court. PPRI is part of a state coalition, Rhode Islanders for a Fair Judiciary (RIFJ), organized to raise awareness regarding the many issues affected by U.S. Supreme Court decisions. RIFJ vigorously opposed the Roberts and Alito nominations. Visit www.rifj.org to learn more and to sigh up for RIFJ alerts.

This fall, the Supreme Court will hear Gonzales v. Carhart, which challenges the federal abortion ban passed by Congress and signed by President Bush in 2003 criminalizing abortions as early as 12 to 15 weeks in pregnancy; abortions that doctors say are safe and often the only way to protect a woman's health. For more information visit www.saveroe.com.

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To access bill text, go to: www.state.ri.us, click 'general assembly', click 'GA legislative info', click 'bill text', click 'search', enter bill number.