Wyoming pregnancy centers-autonomy and rights.
HB0273 creates the “Wyoming Pregnancy Center Autonomy and Rights of Expression (CARE) Act” and sets out legislative findings praising pregnancy centers for providing counseling, referrals, material support, and, in some cases, medical services to people facing unexpected pregnancies. The bill defines key terms such as abortion, abortion-inducing drugs, contraception, miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, pregnancy center, and pre-viability separation procedure, and it distinguishes pregnancy centers from facilities that provide abortion-related services.
The core of the bill prohibits the state and its political subdivisions from adopting or enforcing any law, ordinance, resolution, policy, or similar measure that would require a pregnancy center to provide, refer for, counsel in favor of, advertise for, or otherwise support abortion, abortion-inducing drugs, or contraception. It also bars government entities from restricting a pregnancy center’s ability to provide pregnancy-related information, parenting resources, or medical testing and counseling because the center declines to participate in abortion-related activities. The bill further protects staffing and hiring decisions by preventing government interference with a center’s mission-based employment standards.
The bill would add new protections in Wyoming law for private nonprofit pregnancy centers and medical pregnancy centers, limiting state and local regulation that targets them based on their pro-life stance. It creates a private right of action allowing a pregnancy center or aggrieved person to sue for declaratory, injunctive, and monetary relief, including treble damages, a minimum recovery of $5,000, costs, and attorney fees. It also authorizes legislative intervention in constitutional or legal challenges and makes conforming changes to the state tort claims framework by referencing liability for governmental entities that violate the new provisions.
The available vote history suggests the bill had meaningful support in the House and moved forward with a strong majority, passing third reading 46-14 after a favorable committee recommendation. The Senate Judiciary Committee also recommended amendment and do pass unanimously in the available vote record. Overall, the recorded votes indicate generally positive sentiment among supporters, especially those favoring protections for pro-life pregnancy centers and limits on government regulation of their operations.
The main point of contention is whether government entities should be barred from requiring pregnancy centers to provide abortion-related information, referrals, or services, or from regulating them in ways that critics may view as necessary consumer protection or public health oversight. Opponents are likely to object to the bill’s broad restrictions on local and state authority, its protection of centers that do not provide or refer for abortion or contraception, and its employment provisions tied to a center’s pro-life mission. Supporters, by contrast, frame the bill as protecting free speech, association, and religious or moral autonomy for pregnancy centers.