Lawmaker to propose Florida abortion ban modeled after Alabama’s

A Florida lawmaker plans to introduce a bill modeled after Alabama’s strict new abortion law. And he said God asked him to do it, the Pensacola News Journal reported. 

Early on in the 2019 legislative session, Rep. Mike Hill (R-Pensacola) filed HB-235, which would ban abortions in Florida after a heartbeat is detected. The bill had 20 co-sponsors but never got a hearing in any committee.

While speaking about the recent wave of strict abortion legislation in states like Alabama, Georgia and Missouri, Hill told an audience Thursday he will take another shot at banning more abortions, at the urging of God.

“As plain as day, God spoke to me,” Hill said at a meeting of Women for Responsible Legislation in Pensacola. “He said, ‘That wasn’t my bill,’ talking about the heartbeat detection bill that I filed. He said, ‘That wasn’t my bill.’ I knew immediately what he was talking about. He said, ‘You remove those exceptions and you file it again.’ And I said, ‘yes Lord. I will. It’s coming back. It’s coming back.’ We are going to file that bill without any exceptions just like what we saw passed in Alabama.”

Hill’s remarks were met with cheers and applause, according to the newspaper.

The bill in Alabama would make it a felony to perform abortions in the state and bans abortion at all stages of pregnancy, except when it’s necessary to prevent a serious health risk, with no exceptions for rape or incest.

The law, which has been widely criticized by everyone from President Trump to Pat Robertson is expected to be challenged in court.

Hill said he didn’t agree with the bill’s exceptions, but believes they would improve the bill’s chances of passing. He also said his old bill would have passed if it had been given a hearing during the recent legislative session, but that it wasn’t a priority at the time.

“The priorities were health care, transportation and the Everglades,” Hill said. “All of that, you know, which are important, but life is of preeminence import. Without life, you won’t even have a need for all this other stuff.”