FEATURED
Key Takeaways
- The Pregnant Students’ Rights Act, aimed at providing resources for pregnant students, failed in the Senate with a party-line vote of 47-45, despite passing in the House 217-211.
- The bill sought to require colleges to inform students about their rights and available resources related to pregnancy, but faced opposition mainly from Democrats, who argued it was anti-abortion legislation in disguise.
- Pro-life advocates criticized the opposition as driven by 'pro-abortion senators' who resist measures that could support pregnant women and reduce reliance on abortion.
- Opponents claimed the bill undermined existing protections for pregnant students and did not address necessary support measures such as childcare and flexible policies.
The Pregnant Students’ Rights Act, a Republican-backed bill introduced by Sen. Ashley Moody, recently failed in the Senate after a party-line cloture vote of 47-45 fell short of the required 60 votes.
The legislation would have required colleges and universities participating in federal student aid programs to inform prospective and enrolled students about their rights and resources to carry a pregnancy to term, according to the bill’s text.
This includes lists of on-campus and community support services for pregnancy and parenting, available accommodations, and procedures for filing discrimination complaints related to pregnancy decisions.
It passed in the U.S. House of Representatives on Jan. 22 in a vote of 217-211, with every Democrat voting against it.
Pro-life advocates told The College Fix that the defeat was driven by pro-abortion legislators unwilling to back measures offering practical help to pregnant students.
Madison LaClare, director of federal government affairs for the National Right to Life Committee, told The Fix that “This bill, like many prior pro-life initiatives, failed in the Senate because pro-abortion senators refuse to support any legislation associated with protecting unborn life, no matter how reasonable or beneficial it is for women and families.”
These lawmakers are afraid of bills that genuinely support pregnant women and repeatedly oppose policies that might decrease dependence on abortion. They prefer to simply protect the abortion industry, she said.
“At its core, the Pregnant Students’ Rights Act is a commonsense, compassionate measure that promotes both women’s success and respect for human life,” LaClare said.
“Opposition to this bill highlights how entrenched abortion advocacy has become, even at the expense of policies that clearly benefit women and families,” she said.
She also said the act combats the false narrative that a woman must choose between her child and her education.
By making sure pregnant and parenting students know about the available resources, the bill gives women real support and genuine choices instead of leaving them isolated, she said.
Students for Life Action also criticized pro-abortion senators for opposing the bill.
Reached for comment, SFLAction spokesperson Mary Horlander referred The Fix to its recent news release.
“If you look at the vote for the Pregnant Students’ Rights Act in the 118th Congressional vote, it should shock Americans that every single Democrat in the U.S. House voted against giving pregnant and parenting students information about the help available to them in college,” SFLAction President Kristan Hawkins stated.
“A pro-abortion mindset poisons a lot of campus life, and we fight for the free speech rights of our pro-life students every day. But this bill rights a terrible wrong against those who have chosen to invest in school and family and need to know that they are not alone,” she stated.
However, the bill’s opponents criticized it as “anti-abortion legislation in disguise.”
Reached for comment, The National Women’s Law Center directed The Fix to its news release published after the bill went through the House, which included comments from Shiwali Patel, senior director of education justice.
“The so-called Pregnant Students’ Rights Act does nothing to meaningfully expand support or resources for pregnant or parenting students,” Patel stated. “Instead, it is anti-abortion legislation in disguise, and purposefully undermines existing legal protections for pregnant students under Title IX.”
She acknowledged that students who are pregnant or parenting face serious obstacles in education.
Lawmakers could have pursued meaningful support for pregnant students, such as accessible and affordable childcare, lactation accommodations, flexible attendance or leave policies, and increased federal funding to prevent discrimination, she stated.
“Instead, the PSRA directs students to submit complaints to the Department of Education–the same agency the Trump administration has been enthusiastically dismantling and defunding for the past year, with its Office for Civil Rights being particularly targeted,” Patel stated.
