Idaho Gov. Signs Texas-Style Heartbeat Law

Idaho Gov. Brad Little (R)

On March 23, Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed the Fetal Heartbeat Preborn Child Protection Act. This makes Idaho the first state to enact a law modeled after Texas's Heartbeat Act. Many pro-life states are considering similar laws because Texas's Heartbeat Act has withstood legal challenges.

The law passed the Senate 28-6 and the House 51-14.

Like Texas's Heartbeat Act, Idaho's new law protects the unborn by empowering individuals to file civil lawsuits against those who abort children with detectable heartbeats. A heartbeat becomes detectable at six weeks gestation. The law includes exceptions for rape, incest, and medical emergencies.

Idaho's law differs from the Texas law by limiting the people who can file lawsuits to family members of the aborted child. This includes the child's parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts, or uncles. Additionally, only the abortion providers can be targeted in such suits. Texas's law allows those who knowingly fund or provide transportation to an abortion to be targeted by lawsuits.

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