NEWS RELEASE: Senator Moody Introduces Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act to Empower Parents and Strengthen Accountability

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Ahead of March for Life on Friday, Senator Ashley Moody is working to protect children and empower parents by introducing the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act. This legislation would make it a federal offense to knowingly transport a minor across state lines without complying with parental consent and notification laws. Joining Senator Moody as cosponsors are Senators Bill Cassidy, Kevin Cramer, Jim Risch, Steve Daines, John Kennedy, Deb Fischer, James Lankford, and Pete Ricketts. National Right to Life, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, Students for Life Action, National Right to Life, Priests for Life, Americans United for Life, and March for Life Action also support the measure.

Senator Ashley Moody said, "As a mother, I cannot imagine my child being transported across state lines for a medical procedure without my knowledge. Parents should never be kept out of the loop when it comes to major, life-altering decisions affecting their children. I'm introducing the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act to strengthen protections for parents and families by ensuring compliance with state parental notification and consent laws."

Sen. Bill Cassidy said, "We cannot allow sex traffickers and child abusers to circumvent states' parental notification laws by crossing state lines to conceal an abortion from a child's parents. This legislation puts in place needed safeguards to ensure state sovereignty is protected and those who seek to harm children are held accountable."

Sen. Steve Daines said, "Far too often, children are trafficked across state lines to get an abortion- without parental consent. This is wrong and threatens both the safety of our children and the rights of their parents. I'm proud to introduce the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act with Senator Moody to protect vulnerable minors and uphold the importance of parental rights."

Sen. John Kennedy said, "Parents should not be kept in the dark if their kids cross state lines to receive an abortion. I'm proud to help introduce the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act, which would take important steps to protect vulnerable minors and support parents."

Sen. Deb Fischer said, "No one should be secretly trafficking minors across state lines to obtain an abortion without parental consent. I'm pleased to join Senator Moody in introducing this commonsense legislation in the Senate to keep children safe and hold adults who seek to exploit them accountable."

U.S. Representative Dave Taylor (OH-02) said, "No one should be sneaking children across state lines to receive secret abortions behind the backs of that child's parents," said Congressman Taylor. "This bill will hold all parties accountable and ensure children are not taken advantage of. As states like California and Illinois promote abortions for all and keep parents in the dark about their child's health, the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act will put parents back in the equation and protect the lives of both the child and the unborn."

National Right to Life President Carol Tobias said, "Parents have a right to be involved in the life-altering decisions of their minor daughters-especially decisions as serious and irreversible as abortion. The Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act is a commonsense measure that helps protect vulnerable girls from exploitation and abuse. This bill strengthens parental rights, reinforces state protections for minors, and helps ensure that no child is taken across state lines to evade her state's parental notification law and to obtain an abortion without her parents' knowledge. National Right to Life (NRLC) thanks Senator Moody for her leadership on this legislation. NRLC strongly supports this legislation and urges the Senate to pass it without delay."

Priests for Life National Director Frank Pavone, President, National Prolife Religious Council said, "The Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act, which has been a prolife priority for not only years but decades, is more needed today than ever, as states diverge more sharply than ever before in their abortion policies. Whether one is prolife or pro-choice, we should all be able to agree to protect the well-being of minors and the rights of parents against the actions of those who would transport a minor across state lines to avoid parental involvement laws. I thank Senator Ashley Moody and all our elected lawmakers who are supporting this bill."

Americans United for Life Government Affairs Director Bradley Kehr said, "The federal government should follow the example of states like Idaho and Tennessee which protect minor girls from being trafficked across state lines for abortions without knowledge or consent from their parents. Furthering our nation's rich history of upholding the rights of parents and protecting minor children, the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Actis another step to not only strengthening those rights, but protecting vulnerable minor girls from exploitation. We thank Senator Moody for her prudence in championing this essential legislation."

March for Life Action President Jennie Bradley Lichter said, "We thank Senator Moody for introducing the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act, which prioritizes children's safety and supports parental rights by prohibiting the transportation of minors across state lines to receive an abortion. Parental notification laws exist to protect children from undue coercion or pressure to receive an abortion, and to ensure parents remain part of the conversation about something so profoundly life-altering. The evasion of these laws must have consequences. March for Life Action supports CIANA and other policies that protect the health, safety, and well-being of young women and girls."

Honorable Marilyn Musgrave, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America said, "As a mom and former Attorney General, Senator Moody is leading the charge to stand up for children, born and unborn, and fight the abusers who exploit them. With growing reports of abortion businesses enabling the trafficking of minors across state lines for abortions, the need for the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act has never been more clear. This bill would stop abusers from secretly transporting minors for abortions and require parental involvement. Thank you to Senator Moody for introducing this urgent and necessary legislation."

Kristan Hawkins, President, Students for Life of American & Students for Life Action said, "The Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act closes a dangerous loophole that allows underage children to be taken across state lines for abortions without a parent or guardian's knowledge. By reinforcing parental notification laws, the bill strengthens child safety, deters exploitation, and respects the essential role parents and guardians play in their children's lives. This commonsense measure supports those who have a life-time commitment to a girl's wellbeing, rather than allowing profiteers and possible abusers to push the life-and-death decision of abortion."

The Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act would amend federal law to make it illegal to knowingly transport a minor across state lines with the specific intent that the minor obtain an abortion in order to evade a state's parental consent and notification requirements, imposing fines and possible imprisonment for violators. The bill is designed to strengthen protections for parents and families by ensuring state parental notification or consent laws apply even when a minor is taken out of state seeking an abortion.

Read full bill text here.

In 2024, Missouri took legal action against Planned Parenthood for trafficking minors out of state to obtain abortions without parental consent.

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