Wyoming Governor Signs Law Banning Most Abortions

Wyoming’s governor on March 9 signed a law banning most abortions in the state, but said that the law is flawed.

Gov. Mark Gordon, a Republican, said in a signing message to Wyoming House Speaker Chip Neiman that the Human Heartbeat Act “very likely puts us back in the all too familiar and unfortunate territory of pro-life litigation.”

He added, “It does not offer the durable solution I had hoped for, and it does not put the issue before the people of Wyoming.”

Gordon said he was signing the law anyway because he is pro-life.

Neiman, another Republican, did not return a request for comment.

The act prohibits abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which usually happens around six weeks of gestation. The Wyoming Senate passed the bill with a vote of 27–4, and the Wyoming House passed it 47–7.

Under a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, states can choose how to restrict abortion.

The Wyoming Supreme Court in January struck down different abortion bans.

“The State did not meet its burden of demonstrating the Abortion Laws further the compelling interest of protecting unborn life without unduly infringing upon the woman’s fundamental right to make her own health care decisions. As such, the Abortion Laws do not constitute reasonable and necessary restrictions on a pregnant woman’s right to make her own health care decisions,” a majority said at the time.

Lawmakers mentioned the ruling in the new act, but noted that justices said the legislature does have the authority to impose reasonable restrictions. Lawmakers wrote that they have a compelling interest in protecting life that abortion would end, and that banning abortions after a fetal heartbeat began was a reasonable restriction.

There is an exception for pregnancies that would present a substantial risk to a woman’s life or health if not ended.

Gordon lamented the lack of exceptions for pregnancies caused by rape or incest and said that the law could end up being struck down by the courts.

“Rather than finding a remedy that saves the unborn, I fear we have only added another chapter to the sad saga of repeatedly trying to force a specific solution,” he stated.

Julie Burkhart, president of Wellspring Health Access, an abortion provider in Wyoming, told news outlets in a statement on Monday that she was ready to file a legal challenge against the new ban.

“This ban is an attack on Wyomingites’ constitutional freedom to make their own health care decisions, and it puts the health and well-being of our communities at risk,” she said.