The South Carolina senate voted 27-19 Tuesday to send a six-week abortion ban to the desk of Governor Henry McMaster (R.).
The governor had called legislators back for a special session to resolve a stalemate between the house and senate on the subject. The house, which voted 82-33 to advance the measure, is more conservative than the upper chamber and has supported measures to ban abortion from conception in the past. Three female senate Republicans joined Democrats in successfully blocking a near-total ban, but were unable to block the six-week limit.
“The General Assembly has handled this issue in a thoughtful, transparent and collaborative manner. Tonight, our state is one step closer to protecting more innocent lives. I look forward to signing this bill into law as soon as possible,” wrote McMaster on Twitter.
Senate Bill 474 bans abortion once the fetal heartbeat can be detected at six weeks. The bill allows exceptions for rape and incest up to the 12th week and more generally in the case of medical emergency and fatal fetal anomaly. Doctors who violate the law could face felony charges of up to two years imprisonment, a $10,000 fine, or both.
The measure also requires the biological father to pay child support beginning from the date of conception.
If passed, the measure is expected to draw a legal challenge. The South Carolina Supreme Court struck down a six-week ban in January.
“This Act, which severely limits — and in many instances completely forecloses — abortion, is an unreasonable restriction upon a woman’s right to privacy and is therefore unconstitutional,” wrote Justice Kaye Gorenflo Hearn for the 3-2 majority.
Hearn has since retired and legislators who support the ban passed Tuesday expect a different result from the current iteration of the Court.
The effort in South Carolina comes after a number of other bans passed this year. North Carolina and Nebraska have passed 12-week limits. Florida has passed a six-week ban and North Dakota has passed a near-total abortion limit.