Gov. Ron DeSantis appeared in Kissimmee April 14 to sign into law House Bill 5, which bans abortions after the 15-week mark of pregnancy that the state Legislature passed during the recent session.
But there were many other proposed bills during session that never reached a vote, let alone his pen.
He was at Nacion de Fe Church on West U.S. 192 with a message the bill “defends those who can’t defend themselves.”
“We’re here to protect life. This bill protects the life of unborn children,” he said of the bill that’s officially titled the, “Reducing Fetal and Infant Mortality” bill.
While the bill-turned-law doesn’t have provisions for cases of rape or human trafficking, it does exclude where abortion is necessary to the health of or to prevent serious injury to the mother.
“Babies have beating hearts, they can taste, they can move and feel,” DeSantis said. “Those in the far left have taken a position that babies can be aborted up to the ninth month,” he said, also noting they treat late-aborted fetuses “like trash.”
“What we’re doing here, we’re saying we will not let that happen in the state of Florida,” he said.
House of Representatives Speaker Chris Sprowls also attended Thursday and spoke of what he called the “devastating consequences of abortion.”
“Every child has the right to life. Life is a gift from God,” he said. “Our governor championed the right to life, and to be born into a family that loves them.”
The bill also provides for the review of infant mortality cases and appropriates funds for review committees for them.
The signing sparked immediate reaction from women’s health rights groups, who said many women don’t know they are pregnant before 15 weeks in, and called HB5 “a disgusting assault on women.”
“Gov. DeSantis brags about Florida being the ‘freest state’ in the nation, and yet today he signed a bill to strip away the freedoms of women. There is no such thing as a ‘reasonable’ or ‘generous’ abortion ban, as many Republican politicians want you to believe,”said Rep. Anna Eskamanis (D-Orlando), who represented Planned Parenthood in our area prior to winning election to Tallahassee. “Instead, HB5 is a part of a national agenda to completely ban abortion and contraception. Despite these extreme attacks we will not falter or lose hope — the people of Florida need us to fight back and that’s exactly what we intend to do.”
Part of Sprowls comment also spoke to House Bill 7065, which DeSantis also mentioned Thursday. That bill will provide resources for educational and mentorship programs to help children, fathers and families through state agencies like the Department of Juvenile Justice and the Department of Children and Families, which he said is a way of “Promoting fatherhood in Florida.
“We want fathers to be present and take responsibility for the upbringing of their kids,’ he said during his visit. “Broken families are increasing across all ethnic groups.
“Sure, when you’re married before you have kids, you can go do what you want, and parenthood changes that. But it’s a responsibility I wouldn’t trade for the world,” said the father of three children under five years old.
The bill would also increase funding and benefits for foster parents.
HB 5 is one of the 260 or so bills that did pass during this winter’s legislative session. But here’s a synopsis of some issues that didn’t see bills passed, courtesy of Fresh Take Florida:
Property insurance reforms: It’s been expected to be a topic in this week’s special session, but lawmakers didn’t tackle insurance reforms as Floridians have reportedly seen premiums surge ahead of hurricane season.
Building safety: following the Champlain Towers South condominium collapse, lawmakers couldn’t agree on any new laws requiring mandatory inspections. It may also be a specialsession topic.
Marijuana: Bills aimed at recreational legalization died. Democrats withdrew a doomed bill that would have laid the groundwork for how legal recreational marijuana could work in Florida. It would have mimicked tobacco usage legislation already in place.
A bill to regulate a different drug, kratom, a medicinal plant with opioid properties, stalled in committee.
Digital license plates: A digital driver’s license pilot program is already underway in Florida, but a bill to direct the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to conduct a pilot program testing out digital plates to replace metal ones was withdrawn when it appeared doomed.
