SC Senate panel advances near-total abortion ban as debate exposes GOP, pro-life divisions

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - A South Carolina Senate committee voted Tuesday to advance a sweeping abortion bill to the full Senate, setting up another high-stakes fight at the Statehouse over one of the most contentious issues in state politics.

The Senate Medical Affairs Committee voted 8-4 to send the so-called “Unborn Child Protection Act” to the Senate floor.

The bill was also read over the desk in the Senate on Tuesday. Under Senate rules, it must remain on the calendar for at least 24 hours before it can be taken up. After that, the Senate majority leader would need to place it on special order for it to be formally heard on the floor.

If passed, the bill would ban abortions as soon as a pregnancy can be clinically diagnosed. It would also remove exceptions under current law for rape, incest and fatal fetal anomalies.

The proposal would further tighten restrictions on abortion-inducing drugs, including classifying mifepristone and misoprostol as Schedule IV controlled substances under South Carolina law. It also includes a RICO-style civil framework that supporters say is aimed at unlawful abortion operations and critics say would broaden legal liability for people accused of coordinating or supporting illegal abortions.

Tuesday’s committee hearing underscored not only the divide between abortion-rights supporters and abortion opponents, but also fractures within the Republican Party and among some who identify as pro-life.

Republican Sen. Tom Davis of Beaufort County spoke strongly against the bill, saying he would vote against it in committee and oppose it from becoming law.

“I’m going to vote against this bill in committee. I’m going to do whatever I can to prevent this bill from ever becoming law in South Carolina,” Davis said.

Davis said the bill goes too far by eliminating exceptions for rape, incest and fatal fetal anomaly. He also argued it would create legal consequences for women and professionals and send the wrong message about what it means to support life.

“This law is so out of step of where South Carolinians are,” Davis said. “It does not create a culture of life. It creates a culture of surveillance, of family conflict, legal terror.”

Committee chair Sen. Richard Cash, a Republican from Anderson County and one of the bill’s leading supporters, said the legislation is intended to move South Carolina toward broader protections for unborn life.

“That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be trying to talk about it and trying to move the line for protecting human life forward,” Cash said after the hearing. “And that’s what this bill attempts to do, is protect the sanctity of human life in the womb.”

Cash acknowledged the issue remains deeply contentious and said disagreement within the pro-life movement centers in part on whether the law should include penalties for pregnant women who willingly obtain abortions.

“If you’re passing a law and there’s no penalty for breaking the law, you’re not really making a law, you’re just offering a suggestion to people,” Cash said.

The committee debate and reaction afterward highlighted questions about whether the bill can gain traction in the full Senate before the legislative session ends.

Davis argued it does not have enough support to pass.

“This bill isn’t going to get debated on the calendar. This bill couldn’t muster 15 votes in that Senate,” he said.

Former Republican Sen. Katrina Shealy, who said she identifies with several pro-life beliefs, said she believes the proposal has created a serious divide inside the Republican Party.

“I think that this has caused a great party divide,” Shealy said. “You have the far, far right side of the party ... and then you have the moderate Republican part of the party.”

Shealy also said she believes the bill could have broader impacts on South Carolina’s medical workforce and business climate, arguing physicians may be less likely to practice in the state if they fear legal exposure.

Democratic Sen. Tameika Isaac-Devine of Richland County said she believes the measure reflects political pressure inside the Statehouse and sends the wrong message to South Carolinians.

“I think if this passes the Senate, the message I think it sends to South Carolinians is that you have people who are so out of touch with what’s important to South Carolinians,” Isaac-Devine said.

She also pointed to the makeup of the committee, saying five of its 17 members did not vote and noting there was only one woman on the panel during the hearing.

Cash has said he will push within the Republican caucus to get the bill to the Senate floor, though he acknowledged he does not know whether that effort will succeed.

With only weeks left in the legislative session, the bill’s future remains uncertain. Opponents, including Davis and Isaac-Devine, said they do not believe it will ultimately make it out of the Senate.

If the full Senate takes up the bill, lawmakers are expected to face another lengthy and emotional debate over abortion policy in South Carolina.

Advocacy groups on both sides reacted quickly to Tuesday’s committee vote.

Pro-Life Greenville said in a statement, “Unborn children, like all human beings, deserve to have their lives protected under law here in the Palmetto State. Today’s vote by the SC Senate Medical Affairs Committee brings that urgent need one step closer to reality.”

Planned Parenthood also issued a statement opposing the vote, saying, “Abortion bans have and will continue to cost people their lives, and as this ban inches closer to the governor’s desk, it is becoming increasingly clear just how many of our lives anti-abortion lawmakers are willing to endanger in service to their agenda.”

Feel more informed, prepared, and connected with WIS. For more free content like this, subscribe to our email newsletter, and download our apps. Have feedback that can help us improve? Click here.