Sanctity of Life Act
Encyclopedia
The Sanctity of Life Act was a bill first introduced in the United States House of Representatives
by Rep. Steve Stockman
(R
-TX
) on July 20, 1995, and cosponsored by Rep. Barbara Cubin
(R-WY
). It was reintroduced with similar text by Rep. Ron Paul
(R-TX) in 2005 in the 109th United States Congress
, 110th United States Congress
, and 111th United States Congress
. The repeatedly introduced bill sparked advocacy from pro-life
activists.
) as beginning at conception, "without regard to race, sex, age, health, defect, or condition of dependency." By contrast, the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act
of 2002 amended 1 USC 8 to provide that legal personhood includes all Homo sapiens who are "born alive".
The Sanctity of Life Act further would have recognized that each state has authority to protect the lives of unborn children residing in the jurisdiction of that state. Such legislative declarations are nonbinding statements of policy and are used by federal courts in the context of determining the intent of the legislature in legal challenges.
. It was then referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties on July 28, 1995.
The first Paul bill, , was introduced on February 10, 2005, and again referred to the Judiciary committee, which referred it to the Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property on April 4, 2005. It had five cosponsors.
On February 15, 2007, Paul reintroduced the Act in the 110th Congress, with four cosponsors; he reintroduced another version with the same name on June 6, 2007, with five cosponsors. The bills, and , were referred to the Judiciary committee. The committee referred the first bill to the Subcommittee on the Constitution on March 19, 2007, and the second bill to the Subcommittee on Courts on July 16, 2007; both bills expired in subcommittee.
In 2009, Paul reintroduced another version of the bill which has one cosponsor.
Paul spoke passionately about his pro-life
position, which includes his introduction of the Sanctity of Life Act, while campaigning for U.S. president in 2007, such as in Lawton, Iowa
. Paul Dorr of nearby Ocheyedan
became Paul's Iowa campaign field coordinator because of Paul's strong pro-life stance, stating that unlike other Republicans, Paul does not abandon his position while in office; Paul's sponsorship of the Sanctity of Life Act was immediately cited.
When Paul mentioned the legislation in a personal "Statement of Faith", CBN News White House
correspondent David Brody
noted that Paul was an exception to the pattern of the 2008 Republican candidates for president not engaging in "God talk". The California Catholic Daily also cited Paul as "abortion's 'unshakeable foe'" with the Act as evidence.
On January 22, 2008, the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade
, Norma McCorvey
("Jane Roe"), now a pro-life activist, endorsed Paul for president based on his authorship of the Sanctity of Life Act and the We the People Act.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
by Rep. Steve Stockman
Steve Stockman
Steve Stockman is a Republican politician who represented Texas's 9th Congressional District between 1995 and 1997.- Biography :Stockman was born in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, near Detroit. He graduated from Dondero High School....
(R
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
-TX
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
) on July 20, 1995, and cosponsored by Rep. Barbara Cubin
Barbara Cubin
Barbara Lynn Cubin was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, having served as the sole member of that body from Wyoming. In the 109th Congress, she was a member of the House Resources Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee...
(R-WY
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
). It was reintroduced with similar text by Rep. Ron Paul
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
(R-TX) in 2005 in the 109th United States Congress
109th United States Congress
The One Hundred Ninth United States Congress was the legislative branch of the United States, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, from January 3, 2005 to January 3, 2007, during the fifth and sixth years of George W. Bush's presidency. House members...
, 110th United States Congress
110th United States Congress
The One Hundred Tenth United States Congress was the meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, between January 3, 2007, and January 3, 2009, during the last two years of the second term of President George W. Bush. It was composed of the Senate and the House of...
, and 111th United States Congress
111th United States Congress
The One Hundred Eleventh United States Congress was the meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government from January 3, 2009 until January 3, 2011. It began during the last two weeks of the George W. Bush administration, with the remainder spanning the first two years of...
. The repeatedly introduced bill sparked advocacy from pro-life
Pro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
activists.
Findings
The Sanctity of Life Act would have defined human life and legal personhood (specifically, natural personhoodNatural person
Variously, in jurisprudence, a natural person is a human being, as opposed to an artificial, legal or juristic person, i.e., an organization that the law treats for some purposes as if it were a person distinct from its members or owner...
) as beginning at conception, "without regard to race, sex, age, health, defect, or condition of dependency." By contrast, the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act
Born-Alive Infants Protection Act
The Born-Alive Infants Protection Act of 2002 is an Act of Congress. It extends legal protection to an infant born alive after a failed attempt at induced abortion. It was signed by President George W...
of 2002 amended 1 USC 8 to provide that legal personhood includes all Homo sapiens who are "born alive".
The Sanctity of Life Act further would have recognized that each state has authority to protect the lives of unborn children residing in the jurisdiction of that state. Such legislative declarations are nonbinding statements of policy and are used by federal courts in the context of determining the intent of the legislature in legal challenges.
Provisions
The Act would have amended the federal judicial code to remove Supreme Court and district court jurisdiction to review cases arising out of any statute, ordinance, rule, regulation, or practice, or any act interpreting such a measure, on the grounds that such measure: (1) protects the rights of human persons between conception and birth; or (2) prohibits, limits, or regulates the performance of abortions or the provision of public funds, facilities, personnel, or other assistance for abortions.Legislative history
The Stockman bill, , was introduced on July 20, 1995, and immediately referred to the House Committee on the JudiciaryUnited States House Committee on the Judiciary
The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, also called the House Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is charged with overseeing the administration of justice within the federal courts, administrative agencies and Federal law enforcement...
. It was then referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties on July 28, 1995.
The first Paul bill, , was introduced on February 10, 2005, and again referred to the Judiciary committee, which referred it to the Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property on April 4, 2005. It had five cosponsors.
On February 15, 2007, Paul reintroduced the Act in the 110th Congress, with four cosponsors; he reintroduced another version with the same name on June 6, 2007, with five cosponsors. The bills, and , were referred to the Judiciary committee. The committee referred the first bill to the Subcommittee on the Constitution on March 19, 2007, and the second bill to the Subcommittee on Courts on July 16, 2007; both bills expired in subcommittee.
In 2009, Paul reintroduced another version of the bill which has one cosponsor.
Pro-life advocacy
Paul's reintroduction of the bill was introduced the same year as the We the People Act, which would have removed “any claim based upon the right of privacy, including any such claim related to any issue of ... reproduction” from federal court jurisdiction. After neither bill passed the 109th Congress, the GayWired internet portal criticized Paul's legislation, saying that "the woman bearing the fetus is also an individual whose rights seem less important to Paul than those of the fetus or the state government."Paul spoke passionately about his pro-life
Pro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
position, which includes his introduction of the Sanctity of Life Act, while campaigning for U.S. president in 2007, such as in Lawton, Iowa
Lawton, Iowa
Lawton is a city in Woodbury County, Iowa, United States. It is part of the Sioux City, IA–NE–SD Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 697 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Lawton is located at ....
. Paul Dorr of nearby Ocheyedan
Ocheyedan, Iowa
Ocheyedan is a city in Osceola County, Iowa, United States. The population was 536 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Ocheyedan is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
became Paul's Iowa campaign field coordinator because of Paul's strong pro-life stance, stating that unlike other Republicans, Paul does not abandon his position while in office; Paul's sponsorship of the Sanctity of Life Act was immediately cited.
When Paul mentioned the legislation in a personal "Statement of Faith", CBN News White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
correspondent David Brody
David Brody (correspondent)
David Brody is an American journalist, and White House Correspondent for the Christian Broadcasting Network.- Early career :Brody graduated from Ithaca College in 1988 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications...
noted that Paul was an exception to the pattern of the 2008 Republican candidates for president not engaging in "God talk". The California Catholic Daily also cited Paul as "abortion's 'unshakeable foe'" with the Act as evidence.
On January 22, 2008, the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade
Roe v. Wade, , was a controversial landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court on the issue of abortion. The Court decided that a right to privacy under the due process clause in the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution extends to a woman's decision to have an abortion,...
, Norma McCorvey
Norma McCorvey
Norma Leah McCorvey , better known by the legal pseudonym "Jane Roe", was the plaintiff in the landmark American lawsuit Roe v. Wade in 1973. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned individual states' laws against abortion by ruling them unconstitutional...
("Jane Roe"), now a pro-life activist, endorsed Paul for president based on his authorship of the Sanctity of Life Act and the We the People Act.