Lake County Gazette

Legislation to reverse parts of a controversial new law that provides taxpayer-funded abortions needs to be debated in the General Assembly, Sen. Dan McConchie (R-Hawthorn Woods) told the Lake County Gazette.

McConchie and Rep. Peter Breen (R-Lombard) introduced into both chambers the "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act," written to undo much of House Bill 40, which was signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner on Sept. 28. 

"Rep. Breen and I are calling for full debate and a floor vote on the measure during the upcoming fall veto session," McConchie said. "Unfortunately, it’s up to the majority party to determine whether our legislation will ever get heard. 

Sen. Dan McConchie (R-Hawthorn Woods)

"Illinoisans throughout the state need to call their legislators and encourage them to support our proposed 'No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act' and demand that this legislation be heard."

McConchie has represented Illinois' 26th District since April 2016, when he was appointed to replace Republican Dan Duffy, who resigned to take another job.

McConchie and Breen's bills, Senate Bill 2241 and House Bill 4114, respectively, are similar to federal legislation and would prohibit using taxpayer money to pay for elective abortions.

"This legislation would reverse a portion of the recently enacted House Bill 40 that puts Illinoisans on the hook to pay for elective abortions for state employees and those on Medicaid," McConchie said.

Illinois taxpayers simply cannot afford to pay for all abortions, McConchie said. 

"The average cost of a Medicaid abortion is $1,000," he said. "We don’t have the $30 million required to cover 30,000 abortions every year. In states that have legalized Medicaid abortions, over 50 percent of all abortions become taxpayer-funded. 

"Taxpayers should not be forced to pay for something as controversial as abortion."

SB2241 is in Assignments, while HB4114, which to date has picked up 41 co-sponsors, is in the House Rules Committee.

HB40 was passed by the Democrat-controlled General Assembly in May. Rauner had been counted on to veto it but signed it instead, saying that he has always supported abortion rights and "no woman should be forced to make a different decision than another woman would make purely based on her income."

Rauner is the first governor in U.S. history to require taxpayers to fund abortion.

Breen publicly pulled his support from Rauner shortly afterward, while McConchie released a statement expressing his "profound disappointment."

In a recent Lake County Gazette interview, McConchie said he was surprised by Rauner's decision to sign HB 40. 

"What really troubles me is that there was a public commitment made by the governor office to veto this bill," McConchie said. "His flip-flopping on this issue raises serious questions on whether the governor’s word can be trusted on other matters. I can't speculate on why the governor signed HB40. All I can say is that he got it wrong, profoundly wrong."