Noting the passage of what it terms the “extreme abortion bans” passed by Georgia, Alabama, Missouri, Louisiana, Ohio, and other states during 2019 as efforts to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade, the Legislature passed a resolution supporting women’s reproductive rights. The vote was unanimous, with Legislators Amanda Champion and Mike Sigler excused.
The measure states that “the Tompkins Cunty Legislature strongly condemns any effort at the local, state, or federal levels to roll back or overturn the rights guaranteed by Roe v. Wade, specifically the rights of people to make their own reproductive health decisions in consultation with their medical providers.” The resolution notes that New York State recently enacted the Reproductive Health Act, which codifies the constitutional standard of Roe v. Wade in state law, removing abortion from the criminal code and establishing it as a matter of public health. While women in New York State are protected, it was noted that women in other states are not protected. Legislators Deborah Dawson, Anna Kelles, and Chair Martha Robertson all thanked their colleague Henry Granison for preparing and bringing forward the resolution.