Nebraska Legislature blocks abortion ban with late-night vote

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska’s proposed abortion ban, referred to as a “trigger” bill, will not become law this session. On Wednesday night, state senators voted 31-15 in a cloture vote. It failed to stop debate and kill the filibuster by two votes, needing a supermajority of 33 senators.

Senators spent much of Wednesday debating the Nebraska Human Life Protection Act. The bill would make abortion illegal in Nebraska in the first trimester and beyond, but that would hinge on a major decision by the U.S. Supreme Court that could come this summer.

LB 933, proposed by Senator Joni Albrecht, is considered a " trigger bill” and it would go into effect if the U.S. Supreme Court were to overturn Roe V. Wade.

As Wednesday’s debate unfolded, senators were passionately divided on the bill; some arguing when life begins and others saying the bill will result in more unsafe pregnancies.

If it had passed, Nebraska would have become the 14th state nationally to enact a so-called trigger law.

Supporters of the measure said it would ensure that Nebraska is among the first states to outlaw abortion if the court overturns Roe v. Wade, the landmark case that allowed the procedure.

“This is about ensuring our most precious and vulnerable people, the preborn, are protected,” said Sen. Joni Albrecht, the bill’s lead sponsor.

Opponents slammed the measure as an intrusion on women’s ability to make personal medical decisions.

“What are you all thinking?” asked Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks, of Lincoln. “I have a daughter, she’s 25 years old, and you all are not invited into her medical examination appointments.”

The debate comes ahead of an expected June ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which concerns a Mississippi law that bans abortions after 15 weeks or pregnancy. The court’s 1973 ruling, Roe v. Wade, allows state to regulate but not ban abortions up to the point of fetal viability, at roughly 24 weeks.

Nebraska became the first state to ban abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy in 2010, and the state outlawed a second-trimester abortion procedure in 2020 despite fervent protests from abortion-rights supporters.

The latest measure faces a tougher path, however, because of the current political make-up of Nebraska’s one-house, officially nonpartisan Legislature.

At least 33 votes are required to overcome a filibuster and force a vote on the bill. Republicans in the Legislature hold 32 seats and Democrats have 17. One Democratic lawmaker also typically opposes abortion, but he’s offset by a Republican who has voted in favor of abortion rights in recent years.

Another Republican lawmaker, state Sen. Robert Hilkemann, a retired Omaha doctor, said he was uncomfortable with parts of the measure that could expose physicians to felony charges in a situation where they end up terminating a pregnancy.