On Tuesday, legislators passed four crucial bills, aimed at updating Wisconsin's pre-Roe abortion law, extending assistance to pregnancy crisis resource centers, giving grants to adoptive parents in the state, and protecting minors from so-called "gender-affirming care."

SB 345 seeks to allocate $1,000,000 per fiscal year to Choose Life Wisconsin, a program offering grants to pregnancy resource centers. These centers provide guidance to pregnant women, encouraging them to consider alternatives to abortion. Choose Life Wisconsin reports that there are over 70 such centers across the state.

SB 346 would allocate $5 million towards the establishment of a program that would grant funding to an organization that would provide financial support to Wisconsin families looking to adopt children in Wisconsin.

SB 343 defines abortion by explicitly stating that it excludes any medical treatment performed by a physician with the primary goal of preventing the death of a pregnant woman, rather than intentionally killing a preborn child. It provides specific exceptions for procedures such as removing a miscarriage or addressing issues related to ectopic, embryonic, or molar pregnancies.

Legislators also approved AB 465, a bill that would prohibit minors from accessing so-called "gender-affirming care," in a party-line vote.

The bill would prohibit doctors from administering to minors cross-sex hormones or puberty-blockers or performing surgeries that “sterilize an individual” for the purpose of “changing the minor’s body to correspond to a sex that is discordant with the minor’s biological sex.” It would be enforced by the pertinent licensing board and if a provider is found in violation of the law, his or her license would be revoked. The bill already passed in the state Assembly and will go next to the governor, who earlier this week issued a proclamation declaring this past Tuesday, October 17 (the day of these votes in the Senate), as "Rise up for LGBTQ Youth Day."

Senator Duey Stroebel (R-Saukville), who authored the bill, argued during the legislative discussion that children's brains have not yet fully developed, and they often act on impulse without thoroughly considering the potential consequences of their actions.

“This is the underpinning of laws that prohibit children from joining the military, getting a tattoo, signing a contract, buying alcohol or buying tobacco and those are regardless of the parents’ opinion on those issues,” Stroebel said. “Medically unnecessary and permanent body altering procedures should not be performed on anyone under the age of 18.”

Each of these bills would play a critical role in fostering a culture of life and protecting minors from child abuse disguised as "healthcare"!