Delaware 149th General Assembly (2017-2018) Status: Enacted 8 D cosponsors

SB 5 — AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE CODIFYING U.S. SUPREME COURT PRECEDENT RELATING TO THE TERMINATION OF PREGNANCY.

Last action — Signed by Governor

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. ✓
    Passed Senate
  4. ✓
    Passed House
  5. ✓
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced May 04, 2017. Enacted.

Odds of enactment

High chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a high chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Likely to advance 82% · moderate confidence

  • Enacted

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 19 sponsors

    4 primary, 15 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (8 D).

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 2 recorded votes so far.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Summary

The United States Supreme Court’s decisions in Roe v. Wade and subsequent cases established that access to abortion is a constitutional right and that states may not prohibit abortion prior to viability. As a result of these decisions, and the exercise of prosecutorial discretion by the Attorney General, see Del. Op. Att’y Gen. No. 73-030, § III (Apr. 12, 1973), the Delaware Code's prohibitions against abortion are unconstitutional, and thus unenforceable. This Substitute makes Delaware’s laws on abortion consistent with the scope of the right protected by the United States Constitution and the practice in Delaware for the past 43 years. In doing so, this Act permits the termination of a pregnancy prior to viability, to protect the life or health of the mother, or in the event of serious fetal anomaly. This Substitute differs from Senate Bill No. 5 as follows: (1) It clarifies lines 31 through 34 related to fetal anomalies. (2) It notes, on lines 79 through 81, that informed consent for a procedure under this subchapter is required by § 4408-1.0 through 10.0, Title 16 of the Delaware Administrative Code. (3) It makes clear that nothing in this Substitute is to be construed to affect the continued effectiveness of the Parental Notice of Abortion Act, Subchapter VIII of Chapter 17 of Title 24 of the Delaware Code.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Signed by Governor

  2. Passed By House. Votes: 22 YES 16 NO 3 ABSENT

  3. Amendment HA 5 to SS 1 - Defeated By House. Votes: 14 YES 24 NO 3 ABSENT

  4. Amendment HA 4 to SS 1 - Defeated By House. Votes: 15 YES 20 NO 3 NOT VOTING 3 ABSENT

  5. Amendment HA 1 to SS 1 - Defeated By House. Votes: 15 YES 23 NO 1 NOT VOTING 2 ABSENT

  6. Reported Out of Committee (Health & Human Development) in House with 8 On Its Merits

  7. Assigned to Health & Human Development Committee in House

  8. Passed By Senate. Votes: 11 YES 7 NO 2 NOT VOTING 1 ABSENT

  9. Amendment SA 6 to SS 1 - Defeated By Senate. Votes: 9 YES 8 NO 3 NOT VOTING 1 ABSENT

  10. Amendment SA 6 to SS 1 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  11. Amendment SA 5 to SS 1 - Defeated By Senate. Votes: 7 YES 11 NO 2 NOT VOTING 1 ABSENT

  12. Amendment SA 5 to SS 1 - Defeated By Senate. Votes: 7 YES 11 NO 2 NOT VOTING 1 ABSENT

  13. Amendment SA 5 to SS 1 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  14. Amendment SA 4 to SS 1 - Defeated By Senate. Votes: 4 YES 11 NO 5 NOT VOTING 1 ABSENT

  15. Amendment SA 4 to SS 1 - Defeated By Senate. Votes: 4 YES 11 NO 5 NOT VOTING 1 ABSENT

  16. Amendment SA 4 to SS 1 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  17. Amendment SA 3 to SS 1 - Defeated By Senate. Votes: 7 YES 11 NO 2 NOT VOTING 1 ABSENT

  18. Amendment SA 3 to SS 1 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  19. Amendment SA 2 to SS 1 - Laid On Table in Senate

  20. Amendment SA 2 to SS 1 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  21. Amendment SA 1 to SS 1 - Laid On Table in Senate

  22. Amendment SA 1 to SS 1 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  23. was introduced and adopted in lieu of SB 5

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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4 sponsors · 15 co-sponsors · 43 not signed on · 23 voted No

Sponsors (4)

Co-sponsors (15)

Not signed on (43)

43 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 43 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

SM

Passed 22 Yea · 16 Nay · 3 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 15802
Democratic 7000
Republican 0801
Total 221603
% of votes cast 54%39%0%7%
How each member voted (41)
Member Party Vote
Andria L. Bennett — Yea
Bryon H. Short — Yea
Charles Potter Jr. — Yea
David Bentz — Yea
Deborah Hudson — Not Voting
Earl G. Jaques Jr. — Nay
Gerald L. Brady — Nay
Harvey R. Kenton — Nay
Helene M. Keeley — Yea
James Johnson — Not Voting
John A. Kowalko — Yea
John J. Viola — Yea
John L. Mitchell — Yea
Joseph E. Miro — Nay
Melanie George Smith — Yea
Michael Mulrooney — Yea
Michael Ramone — Nay
Paul S. Baumbach — Yea
Peter C. Schwartzkopf — Yea
Quinton Johnson — Yea
Ruth Briggs King — Nay
Sean Matthews — Yea
Stephen Smyk — Nay
Valerie Longhurst — Yea
William R. Outten — Nay
Debra Heffernan Democratic Yea
Edward S. Osienski Democratic Yea
Kimberly Williams Democratic Yea
Sean M. Lynn Democratic Yea
Stephanie T. Bolden Democratic Yea
Trey Paradee Democratic Yea
William J. Carson Democratic Yea
Charles S Postles Jr. Republican Nay
Daniel B. Short Republican Nay
David L. Wilson Republican Not Voting
Jeffrey N. Spiegelman Republican Nay
Kevin S Hensley Republican Nay
Lyndon D. Yearick Republican Nay
Richard G. Collins Republican Nay
Ronald E. Gray Republican Nay
Timothy D. Dukes Republican Nay

Official roll call →

SM

Passed 11 Yea · 7 Nay · 3 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 6303
Democratic 5000
Republican 0400
Total 11703
% of votes cast 52%33%0%14%
How each member voted (21)
Member Party Vote
Anthony Delcollo — Nay
Brian J. Bushweller — Yea
Bruce C. Ennis — Yea
Catherine Cloutier — Yea
Colin Bonini — Not Voting
David B. McBride — Yea
Ernesto B Lopez — Nay
F. Gary Simpson — Nay
Gregory F. Lavelle — Not Voting
Harris B. McDowell — Yea
Margaret Rose Henry — Yea
Robert Marshall — Not Voting
Bryan Townsend Democratic Yea
David P. Sokola Democratic Yea
John "Jack" Walsh Democratic Yea
Nicole Poore Democratic Yea
Stephanie L. Hansen Democratic Yea
Brian Pettyjohn Republican Nay
Bryant L. Richardson Republican Nay
Dave G. Lawson Republican Nay
Gerald W. Hocker Republican Nay

Official roll call →

Subjects

civil-rights healthcare
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does SB 5 do?
The United States Supreme Court’s decisions in Roe v. Wade and subsequent cases established that access to abortion is a constitutional right and that states may not prohibit abortion prior to viability. As a result of these decisions, and the exercise of prosecutorial discretion by the Attorney General, see Del. Op. Att’y Gen. No. 73-030, § III (Apr. 12, 1973), the Delaware Code's prohibitions against abortion are unconstitutional, and thus unenforceable. This Substitute makes Delaware’s laws on abortion consistent with the scope of the right protected by the United States Constitution and the practice in Delaware for the past 43 years. In doing so, this Act permits the termination of a pregnancy prior to viability, to protect the life or health of the mother, or in the event of serious fetal anomaly. This Substitute differs from Senate Bill No. 5 as follows: (1) It clarifies lines 31 through 34 related to fetal anomalies. (2) It notes, on lines 79 through 81, that informed consent for a procedure under this subchapter is required by § 4408-1.0 through 10.0, Title 16 of the Delaware Administrative Code. (3) It makes clear that nothing in this Substitute is to be construed to affect the continued effectiveness of the Parental Notice of Abortion Act, Subchapter VIII of Chapter 17 of Title 24 of the Delaware Code.
Who sponsors SB 5?
SB 5 is sponsored by Bryan Townsend (Democratic), Debra Heffernan (Democratic), Stephanie L. Hansen (Democratic), Nicole Poore (Democratic), David P. Sokola (Democratic), Sean M. Lynn (Democratic), Edward S. Osienski (Democratic), Trey Paradee (Democratic), John A. Kowalko, Deborah Hudson, David Bentz, Paul S. Baumbach, Harris B. McDowell, Catherine Cloutier, Brian J. Bushweller, John J. Viola, Bryon H. Short, Valerie Longhurst, and Margaret Rose Henry.
What is the current status of SB 5?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced May 04, 2017. Enacted.
Where can I track SB 5?
Track SB 5 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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