Republican lawmakers in Texas have once again introduced a bill that tries to shove fetal personhood into carpool lane regulations. This time, however, the bill passed the House after an amendment from Democrats to include all mothers, whether their children are in the car or not. The dangerous proposal that could further entrench the idea of personhood into state law now goes to the Senate for consideration.
Lawmakers considered the bill on Friday and Saturday, just ahead of Mother’s Day. According to the Texas Tribune, State Rep. Jeff Leach (R) said on the House floor, “When I say this is a gift to our mothers in Texas, I really do mean that.” He added: “This is a step in the right direction when it comes to elevating and supporting mothers across the state.” State Rep. Briscoe Cain (R), who introduced a duplicate carpool lane bill, said during floor debate that it was “a small but meaningful way to support Texas mothers,” per KSST Radio. Personally, I think supporting mothers would mean ending forced pregnancy and guaranteeing paid leave and affordable childcare, but I’m not a politician.
But this time around, Democrats got involved. On Saturday, Leach said his bill would benefit pregnant women driving to work, picking up their kids, and buying groceries. State Rep. Donna Howard (D) said many mothers do these things, not just ones who are pregnant. (Erm, dads do these things as well.) Leach responded that he’d welcome an amendment, and state Rep. Gina Hinojosa (D) offered a new version that says the HOV carveout applies not only to any pregnant person, but also to any woman driver who “is a parent or legal guardian,” regardless of whether kids are in the car.
HB 2462 passed on Saturday by a vote of 130-2, with all Democrats present voting yes. Notably, Cain voted against it and said in a statement explaining his vote that he did so because Rep. Hinojosa’s amendment “guts the pro-life purpose of the bill.” He wrote, “As originally written, the bill recognized that the unborn child was an additional occupant. The amendment totally disregards this principle.” This should really give the fetal personhood game away: He only cared about defining an “unborn child” as a person.
Afterward, Hinojosa told The Texas Tribune that her party has a “philosophical” disagreement with the GOP about fetal personhood, but that Leach “offered up an opportunity, and so we took it.” She added that she would like to see more concrete help, like addressing child care costs, access to healthcare, and improving public schools, but that, essentially, this was better than nothing. “We don’t do nearly enough to help families,” Hinojosa said. “So when we have a chance to do something, we take it.”
What they’ve actually done is played footsie with fascists and perhaps contributed to further burrowing the dangerous concept of fetal personhood in state law in exchange for maybe saving some people a few minutes on the road. If embryos and fetuses are really people, states could argue they have license to investigate women over their miscarriages and stillbirths and charge them with manslaughter or murder. States could also ban IVF, which involves routine disposal of unused embryos, or ban certain forms of birth control by claiming they prevent fertilized eggs from implanting. And while the money would be nice, proposals from state and federal lawmakers to create tax credits and child support for fetuses are part of this same strategy.
The move from Texas Democrats is reminiscent of other well-meaning people trying to point out the hypocrisy of anti-abortion lawmakers. In July 2022, a Plano woman named Brandy Bottone went viral for challenging a ticket she received for driving in the HOV lane by herself at 34 weeks pregnant. She argued that, after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and Texas banned abortion, her state was treating her fetus as a person and should dismiss the $275 ticket. “This has my blood boiling,” Bottone told the Dallas Morning News. “How could this be fair? According to the new law, this is a life.”
Abortion bans and other attacks on bodily autonomy are enraging, but advancing notions of fetal personhood is doing conservatives’ work for them. Here’s hoping this bill doesn’t pass the state Senate. If it does, and Gov. Greg Abbott (R) signs it, it would take effect on September 1.
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