May 24, 2025, 10:08 AM ET

Texas House passes bill to stop taxpayer-funded abortion travel

Lawmakers in the Texas House passed a bill on May 22 that prevents taxpayer funding of abortion — particularly, abortion travel.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

Texas House legislators passed SB 33, a bill that makes it illegal for cities to use taxpayer dollars to fund women to travel out of state for abortion.
Austin and San Antonio city councils had both funneled taxpayer funding toward hotel, food, and travel costs associated with abortion travel. AG Paxton filed suits against them, which are still pending.
The bill now returns to the Senate for final approval, and if approved, to Governor Abbott for his signature.

WHAT’S HAPPENING:

SB 33 prohibits city councils in the state from earmarking taxpayer funds for abortion travel. According to Rep. Candy Noble, the legislation “closes a perceived loophole” that had resulted in several cities from creating budget funds for abortion travel.

Though the state protects nearly all preborn children from abortion, the cities of Austin and San Antonio have both voted to set aside taxpayer funds to pay for abortion-related travel expenses, with funds covering things including travel, hotel, and food costs for women to kill their preborn children out of state.

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Attorney General Ken Paxton has responded by suing both cities, arguing that their actions violate state law. Though the lawsuits are still pending, this legislation explicitly makes it illegal for cities like these to create or fund abortion travel in the future.

“Texas law has made it clear that the life of the preborn is valuable and worth saving. Once SB 33 is signed by Governor Abbott, city councils will no longer use taxpayer dollars to traffic women and children across state lines for abortions that take the life of one person and harm the health of another,” explained Mary Elizabeth Castle, Director of Government Relations for Texas Values.

Though the bill passed the Senate in April, changes in the House send it back to the Senate for final approval. It will then head to the desk of Governor Greg Abbott for signature.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

Lieutenant-Governor Dan Patrick previously praised the Senate’s passage of the bill, noting that it was one of his “priorities.”

“Since 2021, abortions in Texas have essentially ground to a halt. A number of rogue, liberal cities have done everything in their power to skirt state law, including paying for out-of-state travel for abortions on-demand outside Texas. This is unacceptable,” he said in April.

“The Senate’s passage of SB 33 draws a line in the sand, prohibiting these cities from using taxpayer dollars to fund abortion-related travel to circumvent state law.”

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