Screenshot via City of Amarillo
Amarillo City Council has voted 4 to 1 to approve amended ballot language for the Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinance election.
The language passed by the council, which will appear on ballots as Proposition A in November, was largely similar to the version contained in the council’s agenda packet. The one change made was the removal of the phrase “establishing a criminal offense” for the manufacturing, possessing, and distribution of abortion-inducing drugs. That language was replaced with the term “and shall be unlawful.”
The full language of the proposition is included below. (We have struck the part struck by the council and included the new language in bold and italics. The struck portion will not appear on the ballot, and the added part will not be presented differently than the rest of the text. of the proposition.)
THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF AMARILLO, TEXAS SHALL BE AMENDED TO ADOPT AN INITIATED ORDINANCE, SUBMITTED BY THE AMARILLO SANCTUARY CITY FOR THE UNBORN CITIZEN INITIATIVE PETITION INITIATING COMMITTEE, DECLARING THE CITY OF AMARILLO A SANCTUARY CITY FOR THE UNBORN; DECLARING THAT ABORTION AT ALL TIMES AND AT ALL STAGES OF PREGNANCY IS UNLAWFUL UNLESS AN ABORTION IS PERFORMED TO SAVE THE LIFE OF A PREGNANT WOMAN IN A MEDICAL EMERGENCY; FINDING THAT ABORTION-INDUCING DRUGS ARE DECLARED CONTRABAND; ESTABLISHING A CRIMINAL OFFENSE AND SHALL BE UNLAWFUL FOR ANY PERSON TO MANUFACTURE, POSSESS, OR DISTRIBUTE ABORTION INDUCING DRUGS IN THE CITY OF AMARILLO; CALLING UPON EVERY UNITED STATES ATTORNEY IN THE STATE OF TEXAS, BOTH PRESENT AND FUTURE, TO INVESTIGATE AND PROSECUTE ABORTION PROVIDERS AND ABORTION-PILL DISTRIBUTION NETWORKS UNDER 18 U.S.C. SECTIONS 1461 AND 1462 AND UNDER THE RACKETEER INFLUENCED AND CORRUPT ORGANIZATIONS ACT (RICO); ENCOURAGING ALL VICTIMS OF ABORTION PROVIDERS AND ABORTION-PILL DISTRIBUTION NETWORKS, INCLUDING MOTHERS, FATHERS, AND SURVIVING RELATIVES OF ABORTED UNBORN CHILDREN, TO SUE RACKETEERING ENTERPRISES UNDER CIVIL RICO; CALLING UPON DISTRICT ATTORNEYS THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF TEXAS INVESTIGATE AND PROSECUTE ALL TEXAS ABORTION FUNDS AND THEIR DONORS THAT HAVE AIDED OR ABETTED ABORTIONS IN TEXAS; PROHIBITING ABORTIONS WITHIN THE CITY OF AMARILLO; PROHIBITING ABORTIONS ON CITY OF AMARILLO RESIDENTS; PROHIBITING ABORTION TRAFFICKING ON AN UNBORN CHILD; PROHIBITING ABORTION-INDUCING DRUGS IN THE CITY OF AMARILLO; PROHIBITING ANY ORGANIZATION THAT VIOLATES 18 U.S.C. SECTIONS 1461 OR 1462 BY FACILITATING ABORTIONS FROM OPERATING OR DOING BUSINESS IN THE CITY OF AMARILLO; PROHIBITING THE TRANSPORTATION OR DISPOSAL IN THE CITY OF AMARILLO OF THE REMAINS OF AN UNBORN CHILD KILLED BY AN ABORTION; PROVIDING A PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION; PROVIDING FOR AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
Councilman Josh Craft was the only vote against the language. Craft had expressed a desire to undergo a further review of the language and proposed waiting until a special meeting to approve the language.