Amendment Would Prevent Taxpayer Funds
From Being Used to Pay for Abortion Travel

WASHINGTON – Today, the House of Representatives continued debate on H.R. 2670, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2024.

An amendment offered by Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) to prohibit the Secretary of Defense from paying for or reimbursing expenses relating to elective abortion passed in a vote of 221 to 213.

“We thank Representative Ronny Jackson for his efforts to prevent the illegal use of taxpayer funds to pay for or reimburse expenses related to abortion,” said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life.

Continued Tobias, “Contrary to remarks made on the House floor, Republicans are not the ones trying to change the status quo. It is the Biden Administration wanting to dip into the pockets of taxpayers and illegally use that money to pay for abortion travel.”

Federal law (10 U.S.C. § 1093) has long prevented the Department of Defense (DOD) from using funds to perform elective abortions and prevented the DOD from using its facilities to provide abortions. On October 20, 2022, the Biden Administration’s DOD published a memorandum directing the DOD to pay the travel and transportation costs for military members and dependents who travel to obtain elective abortions.

The federal prohibition against DOD funding of elective abortion clearly extends to funding for any item related to abortion, such as travel and transportation, which has been the case for the entire life of the funding prohibition.

The amendment would:

• Clarify and explain federal law (10 U.S.C. § 1093) that prevents DOD funding from being used to perform elective abortions and prohibits DOD facilities from being used to provide abortions.
• Repeal the October 20, 2022 memorandum.
• Amend federal law to clarify that the DOD may not pay for the licensure of healthcare professionals in a state if the purpose is to provide abortions.

Founded in 1968, the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC), the federation of affiliates in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia and more than 3,000 local chapters, is the nation’s oldest and largest grassroots pro-life organization. Recognized as the flagship of the pro-life movement, National Right to Life works through legislation and education to protect innocent human life from abortion, infanticide, assisted suicide and euthanasia.