Victory: Court Cuts Off Planned Parenthood's Taxpayer Funding

The ACLJ is pleased to announce that the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has sided with the State of Texas and held that the State may choose not to subsidize the life-ending work of abortion-providing organizations such as Planned Parenthood.

In May, 2012 the ACLJ filed an amicus brief on behalf of the Houston Coalition for Life and over 39,000 members of the Committee to Stop Taxpayer Funding of Abortion. Our brief urged the court to permit Texas to exercise its constitutionally-protected authority to reject pro-abortion messages and halt funding to programs that support abortion.

In a 3-0 panel decision, the court of appeals agreed. In its opinion, the court held that “Texas’s authority to promote that policy [of non-abortion family planning] would be meaningless if it were forced to enlist organizations as health care providers and message-bearers that were also abortion advocates. The authority of Texas to disfavor abortion within its own subsidized program is not violative of the First Amendment.”

The ACLJ is dedicated to the promotion of Constitutionally sound, life-affirming policies, and supports the authority of federal, state and local governments to prevent the direct or indirect subsidizing of abortion through public funds. We are pleased with this result and will continue to advocate for justice for unborn children.