H.B. 908
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
Apr 24, 2024
SESSION 2023 HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK
H D
HOUSE BILL DRH40531-MLa-144A
Short Title: Decriminalize Reproductive Health. (Public)
Sponsors: Representative Staton-Williams.
Referred to:
1 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
2 AN ACT TO REPEAL PARTS I AND II OF SENATE BILL 20 AND REENACT THE LAWS
3 GOVERNING ABORTION AS THEY EXISTED PRIOR TO THE ENACTMENT OF
4 SENATE BILL 20; TO PRESERVE NORTH CAROLINA WOMEN'S ACCESS TO
5 OUT-OF-STATE ABORTIONS; TO CRIMINALIZE THE INTERFERENCE WITH A
6 WOMAN SEEKING AN ABORTION; TO CREATE A PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION
7 AGAINST AN INDIVIDUAL WHO INTERFERES WITH A WOMAN SEEKING AN
8 ABORTION; TO DECLARE THE RIGHT TO USE CONTRACEPTION TO PREVENT
9 PREGNANCY SHALL NOT BE LIMITED; TO PROHIBIT THE TRACKING OF
10 INDIVIDUALS WHO PURCHASE EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION; TO CLARIFY
11 THAT INDIVIDUALS WHO PROVIDE TRANSPORTATION TO ABORTIONS ARE
12 NOT CRIMINALLY LIABLE; TO PROHIBIT GEOFENCING WITHIN A ONE-MILE
13 RADIUS OF A HEALTHCARE FACILITY THAT PROVIDES ABORTIONS; TO
14 CRIMINALIZE THE UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF ABORTION DATA; TO
15 CLARIFY THAT A FATHER DOES NOT HAVE A RIGHT OF ACTION RELATING TO
16 THE ASSISTANCE WITH OR PERFORMANCE OF AN ABORTION; TO MAKE
17 VARIOUS CHANGES TO THE LAWS PERTAINING TO CRISIS PREGNANCY
18 CENTERS; TO ENSURE PROMPT ACCESS TO ABORTION IN THE CASES OF
19 MEDICAL EMERGENCY AND LIFE-LIMITING FETAL ANOMALIES; TO REQUIRE
20 THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES TO ESTABLISH AND
21 IMPLEMENT MEASURES TO ENSURE THE PRIVACY OF INDIVIDUALS SEEKING
22 REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH SERVICES; AND TO APPROPRIATE FUNDS TO THE
23 DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES FOR COSTS RELATED TO
24 IMPLEMENTING AND RAISING AWARENESS OF THE CHANGES IN THIS ACT
25 GOVERNING REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH SERVICES.
26 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
27
28 REPEAL PARTS I AND II OF SENATE BILL 20 (S.L. 2023-14)
29 SECTION 1.(a) Effective retroactively to July 1, 2023, Part I and Section 2.4 of S.L.
30 2023-14, as amended by S.L. 2023-65, are repealed.
31 SECTION 1.(b) Effective retroactively to October 1, 2023, Sections 2.1 through 2.3
32 and Section 2.5 of S.L. 2023-14, as amended by S.L. 2023-65, are repealed.
33
34 INTERSTATE ACCESS TO ABORTION
35 SECTION 2.(a) Article 1I of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is amended by
36 adding a new section to read:
*DRH40531-MLa-144A*
 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2023
1 "§ 90-21.94. Interstate access to reproductive healthcare.
2 (a) Females in the State shall have the right to access reproductive healthcare in other
3 states.
4 (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, it is lawful for any female who resides
5 in North Carolina to obtain an abortion in another state and obtain contraception in another state.
6 (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, it is lawful for any individual to assist or
7 support a female who resides in North Carolina to obtain an abortion in another state or obtain
8 contraception in another state."
9 SECTION 2.(b) G.S. 90-21.88 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
10 "(d) None of the provisions of this section shall apply to an abortion performed or initiated
11 in another state."
12
13 CRIMINALIZATION OF INTERFERING WITH A WOMAN SEEKING AN
14 ABORTION
15 SECTION 3.(a) Article 35 of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is amended by
16 adding a new section to read:
17 "§ 14-277.9. Interference with individuals seeking abortion.
18 (a) Offense. – All of the following are unlawful:
19 (1) For any individual to obstruct, block, or otherwise interfere with another
20 individual's access to or egress from, or from the common areas of, a
21 healthcare facility that performs abortions.
22 (2) For any individual to injure or threaten to injure another individual who is
23 seeking an abortion.
24 (3) For an individual to willfully harass, without any legal purpose, an individual
25 seeking an abortion.
26 (4) For an individual to publish, disclose, or otherwise misuse the personal
27 information of an individual seeking an abortion.
28 (b) Punishment. – An individual who violates this section shall be guilty of a Class H
29 felony."
30 SECTION 3.(b) This section becomes effective December 1, 2024, and applies to
31 offenses committed on or after that date.
32
33 PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION
34 SECTION 4.(a) G.S. 99D-1 is amended by adding two new subsections to read:
35 "(d) All of the following are violations of this Chapter:
36 (1) For any individual to obstruct, block, or otherwise interfere with another
37 individual's access to or egress from, or from the common areas of, a
38 healthcare facility that performs abortions.
39 (2) For any individual to injure or threaten to injure another individual who is
40 seeking an abortion.
41 (3) For an individual to willfully harass, without any legal purpose, an individual
42 seeking an abortion.
43 (4) For an individual to publish, disclose, or otherwise misuse the personal
44 information of an individual seeking an abortion.
45 (e) Any individual who is the victim of a violation described in subsection (d) of this
46 section may bring a civil action. The court may restrain and enjoin such future acts and may
47 award compensatory and punitive damages to the plaintiff. The court may award court costs and
48 attorneys' fees to the prevailing party. However, a prevailing defendant may be awarded
49 reasonable attorneys' fees only upon a showing that the case is frivolous, unreasonable, or without
50 foundation. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an action under this section must be
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1 commenced within the latter of 25 years of the conduct giving rise to the action or four years
2 after discovery of the conduct giving rise to the action."
3 SECTION 4.(b) This section becomes effective October 1, 2024, and applies to
4 violations committed on or after that date.
5
6 RIGHT TO USE CONTRACEPTION
7 SECTION 5. Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article
8 to read:
9 "Article 44.
10 "Right to Use Contraception.
11 "§ 90-751.1. Title.
12 This Article may be cited as the "Right to Use Contraception Act."
13 "§ 90-751.2. Legislative declaration.
14 The right to use contraception implicates the fundamental liberty to prevent pregnancy. It is
15 the policy of the State of North Carolina that this State has no legitimate governmental interest
16 in limiting the freedom to use contraception to prevent pregnancy."
17
18 PROHIBIT TRACKING OF EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION SALES
19 SECTION 6. Chapter 66 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article
20 to read:
21 "Article 52.
22 "Emergency Contraception Financial Privacy Act.
23 "§ 66-520. Definitions.
24 The following definitions apply in this Article:
25 (1) Emergency contraception. – Levonorgestrel or any other drug, drug regimen,
26 or device approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration to prevent
27 pregnancy when administered after sexual contact, including prescription and
28 over-the-counter hormonal emergency contraception.
29 (2) Payment card network. – An entity involved in facilitating or processing an
30 electronic transfer of funds between a merchant and a customer using a
31 payment card. This term does not include the following:
32 a. A bank holding federally insured deposits from individuals.
33 b. A credit union holding federally insured deposits from individuals.
34 (3) Payment code. – Any code or other indicator that identifies to a payment card
35 network, merchant, or bank whether a purchase was made for emergency
36 contraception.
37 "§ 66-521. Prohibitions.
38 (a) No merchant, payment card network, bank, or retailer in this State may assign a
39 payment code or any other code which may identify that a purchase or transaction was made for
40 emergency contraception.
41 (b) No merchant, payment card network, bank, or retailer in this State may knowingly
42 maintain a record of individuals in this State who have purchased emergency contraception.
43 (c) No merchant, payment card network, bank, or retailer in this State may knowingly
44 maintain information which may disclose the identity of any individual who has purchased
45 emergency contraception."
46
47 FREEDOM TO TRANSPORT
48 SECTION 7. Article 1I of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is amended by adding
49 a new section to read:
50 "§ 90-21.95. Freedom to transport.
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1 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no individual who provides transportation to a
2 woman to a healthcare facility where an abortion is performed on that woman shall be criminally
3 liable for the sole reason of providing transportation."
4
5 GEOFENCING PROHIBITED
6 SECTION 8. Article 1I of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is amended by adding
7 a new section to read:
8 "§ 90-21.96. Geofencing prohibited.
9 (a) The following definitions apply in this section:
10 (1) Consumer health information. – Personal information that is linked or
11 reasonably linkable to an individual and that identifies the individual's past,
12 present, or future health status.
13 (2) Geofence. – Technology that uses global positioning coordinates, cell tower
14 connectivity, cellular data, radio frequency identification, Wi-Fi data, or any
15 other form of spatial or location detection to establish a virtual boundary
16 around a specific physical location or to locate a consumer within a virtual
17 boundary.
18 (b) It is unlawful for any individual or entity to implement a geofence within a 1-mile
19 radius of any healthcare facility that performs abortions if the geofence is used to:
20 (1) Identify or track individuals seeking abortions.
21 (2) Collect consumer health information from individuals seeking abortions.
22 (3) Send notifications, messages, or advertisements to individuals related to their
23 consumer health information."
24
25 ABORTION DATA PRIVACY ACT
26 SECTION 9.(a) Article 11 of Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is amended by
27 adding a new section to read:
28 "§ 14-44.2. Unauthorized disclosure of abortion data.
29 (a) Definitions. – The following definitions apply in this section:
30 (1) Covered entity. – Any internet service provider, the affiliates or subsidiaries
31 of an internet service provider, search engine, cloud service provider, website,
32 social media provider, internet website, web application, or internet
33 advertising network.
34 (2) Protected information. – An individual's internet search history, nonpublic
35 social media posts, emails, nonpublic internet communications, internet
36 browsing history, or any other means of searching for information online.
37 (b) Offense. – No covered entity in the State shall disclose protected information related
38 to an individual's decision to obtain an abortion, information about abortion, or abortion providers
39 to a third party or law enforcement agency.
40 (c) Punishment. – An individual or organization who violates this section commits an
41 infraction as defined in G.S. 14-3.1 and is subject to a fine of five thousand dollars ($5,000) per
42 violation.
43 (d) Exceptions. – A covered entity may disclose the protected information described in
44 this section if ordered to by a court of competent jurisdiction or if the information is subject to a
45 validly obtained search warrant."
46 SECTION 9.(b) This section becomes effective December 1, 2024, and applies to
47 offenses committed on or after that date.
48
49 CLARIFICATION THAT FATHERS DO NOT HAVE A RIGHT OF ACTION
50 SECTION 10. G.S. 90-21.88 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
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1 "(e) No father of an unborn child aborted under this Article, or husband of a woman who
2 had an abortion under this Article, may bring an action against any of the following:
3 (1) The woman who had the abortion.
4 (2) Any individuals who paid for or assisted in paying for the abortion.
5 (3) Any healthcare providers who performed or assisted in performing the
6 abortion.
7 (4) The healthcare facility where the abortion was performed.
8 (5) Any individuals or entities responsible for transportation of the woman to the
9 healthcare facility where the abortion was performed.
10 (6) Any other individual or entity who supported the woman who had the abortion
11 in any way."
12
13 CRISIS PREGNANCY CENTER CHANGES
14 SECTION 11. Article 16 of Chapter 131E of the General Statutes is amended by
15 adding two new sections to read:
16 "§ 131E-269.5. Certification of crisis pregnancy centers.
17 (a) No person shall operate a crisis pregnancy center without obtaining certification from
18 the Department as a facility suitable for the provision of crisis pregnancy services. As used in
19 this section, "crisis pregnancy center" means a nonprofit organization, other than a hospital,
20 ambulatory surgical facility, or clinic that performs abortions, that holds itself out as a facility
21 that provides care for pregnant women, including pregnancy counseling services, pregnancy
22 testing, and other nonmedical pregnancy services.
23 (b) Applications for certification shall be available from the Department, and each
24 application filed with the Department shall contain all necessary and reasonable information that
25 the Department may by rule require. The Department shall grant certification to the applicant
26 upon a determination by the Department that the applicant has complied with this section and
27 any rules adopted under this section. The Department shall charge the applicant a nonrefundable
28 annual certification fee in the amount of nine hundred dollars ($900.00).
29 (c) Each certification shall be issued only for the premises and persons named in the
30 application and shall not be transferable or assignable except with the written approval of the
31 Department.
32 (d) Certifications shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the certified premises.
33 (e) The Department shall adopt rules pertaining to the certification of crisis pregnancy
34 centers. The Department is authorized to apply any relevant requirement for the certification of
35 clinics that perform abortions to the standards applicable to crisis pregnancy centers certified by
36 the Department as suitable for the provision of crisis pregnancy services. The rules shall ensure
37 that standards for crisis pregnancy centers certified by the Department address patient care at the
38 center, protect patient privacy, provide quality assurance, and ensure that patients experiencing
39 pregnancy complications receive a referral for any necessary medical attention.
40 (f) The Department shall make or cause to be made inspections of crisis pregnancy
41 centers on an annual basis. The Department is authorized to delegate to a State officer, agent,
42 board, bureau, or division of State government the authority to make inspections according to the
43 rules adopted by the Department. The Department may revoke this delegated authority in its
44 discretion.
45 (g) Notwithstanding the provisions of G.S. 8-53 or any other provision of law relating to
46 the confidentiality of communications between physician and patient, the representatives of the
47 Department who make these inspections may review any writing or other record in any recor