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RESOLUTION NO. 5280 <br />A RESOLUTION DECLARING THE RIGHT TO SAFE AND <br />LEGAL ABORTION AND AFFIRMING THE CITY OF EUGENE'S <br />COMMITMENT TO ACT IN SUPPORT OF THAT RIGHT BY <br />AUTHORIZING THE CITY TO PARTICIPATE AS AN AMICUS IN <br />FORTHCOMING FEDERAL LAWSUITS CHALLENGING <br />ABORTION BANS AROUND THE COUNTRY. <br />A. State governments across the nation are passing laws that expressly or effectively <br />ban abortion in those states. <br />B. Oregon is the only state with no additional statutory restrictions on abortion. <br />C. Eugene voters have a history of supporting reproductive freedom and defeating <br />anti -abortion ballot measures, including defeating, with 79 percent of the vote, Measure 106, <br />which would have denied insurance coverage for abortion to the most vulnerable Oregonians <br />including those who rely on the Oregon Health Plan, as well as our dedicated public employees. <br />D. The City of Eugene has also demonstrated its commitment to the health of Eugene <br />residents by mandating that employers provide paid sick leave prior to it being mandated by the <br />state. <br />E. Oregon House Bill 3391, The Reproductive Health Equity Act of 2017, codified <br />the right to safe and legal abortion in the State of Oregon. <br />F. Every person who can become pregnant needs access to the full range of safe, <br />affordable, and comprehensive reproductive healthcare services throughout their life, including <br />screenings for cancer and sexually transmitted infections, contraceptive services, abortion care, <br />prenatal care, labor and delivery services, and postpartum care. <br />G. Various states have, in recent months, proposed legislation that would prevent a <br />person who can become pregnant from obtaining an abortion as early as six weeks after <br />conception, when a person is often not yet aware of their pregnancy. <br />H. Some of this legislation also threatens healthcare providers with prison time of up <br />to 99 years and fines for performing abortions in their capacity as medical professionals. <br />L Such legislation will have profoundly negative impacts on the health of people who <br />can become pregnant by effectively eliminating access to all safe and legal abortion services. <br />J. Since 1976, federal legislation known as the Hyde Amendment has prohibited the <br />use of federal funds for abortion services and because of the systems of structural racism and <br />socioeconomic inequality, people of color are disproportionately impacted by the lack of access <br />to safe abortion; and therefor are more likely to experience unintended pregnancy than white <br />people, reinforcing the disproportionate impact of restrictions on safe and legal abortion. <br />K. Rather than implementing regressive, medically unnecessary, and extreme policies <br />banning or severely restricting access to abortion, policy makers should instead focus on the <br />maintenance and expansion of services which aim to reduce unintended pregnancies, and <br />Resolution -- Page 1 of 2 <br />