Protecting water from chemical abortion waste.

25LSO-0354
2025
STATE OF WYOMING
25LSO-0354
Numbered
2.0

HOUSE BILL NO. HB0159

Protecting water from chemical abortion waste.

Sponsored by: Representative(s) Bear, Andrew, Brady, Brown, G, Campbell, K, Guggenmos, Haroldson, Heiner, Hoeft, Kelly, McCann, Rodriguez-Williams and Wasserburger and Senator(s) Hicks, Pearson, Salazar, Smith, D and Steinmetz

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to abortions and environmental quality; specifying requirements for the provision of chemical abortions; specifying criminal and civil penalties and liability; specifying exceptions to criminal liability; specifying requirements for manufacturers of chemical abortion drugs; specifying environmental and disposal requirements for abortion drugs; specifying duties of the department of environmental quality; specifying applicability; providing for the conflict of laws; providing definitions; requiring rulemaking; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1
.

W.S. 35
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6
‑
201 through 35
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6
‑
204 are created to read:

ARTICLE 2
REGULATION OF CHEMICAL ABORTIONS

35
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6
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201.

Definitions.

(a)

As used in this article:

(i)

"
Abortion" means the act of using or prescribing any instrument, medicine, drug or any other substance, device or means with the intent to terminate the pregnancy of a woman, including the elimination of one (1) or more unborn babies, with knowledge that the termination by those means will, with reasonable likelihood, cause the death of the unborn baby. "Abortion" shall not include any use, prescription or means specified in this paragraph if the use, prescription or means are done with the intent to:

(A)

Save the life or preserve the health of the unborn baby;

(B)

Remove a dead unborn baby caused by spontaneous abortion or intrauterine fetal demise;

(C)

Treat a woman for an ectopic pregnancy; or

(D)

Treat a woman for cancer or another disease that requires medical treatment which treatment may be fatal or harmful to the unborn baby.

(ii)

"Abortion drug" means any medicine, drug or other substance, or combination thereof and excluding medicines, drugs and substances used for contraceptive purposes, when used to intentionally:

(A)

Kill the unborn baby of a woman known to be pregnant; or

(B)

Terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead unborn baby.

(iii)

"Catch kit" means a collection container designed to catch and hold medical waste or infectious waste, including containers used for collecting samples for testing;

(iv)

"Chemical abortion" means the use of an abortion drug to intentionally:

(A)

Kill the unborn baby of a woman known to be pregnant; or

(B)

Terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant, with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead unborn baby.

(v)

"Health care provider" means any person licensed to prescribe prescription drugs under federal law or state law;

(vi)

"Medical waste bag" means a biohazardous waste container made to contain medical or biohazardous waste;

(vii)

"Pregnancy" or "pregnant" means the human female reproductive condition of having a living unborn baby or human being within a human female's body throughout the entire embryonic and fetal stages of the unborn human being from fertilization, when a fertilized egg has implanted in the wall of the uterus, to full gestation and childbirth;

(viii)

"Unborn baby" means an individual living member of the species homo sapiens throughout the entire embryonic and fetal stages from fertilization to full gestation and childbirth.

35
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6
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202.

Chemical abortions; requirements; penalties; liability; exceptions.

(a)

No health care provider shall knowingly provide or attempt to provide a chemical abortion without completing all of the following:

(i)

Physically examining the patient;

(ii)

Being physically present with the patient at a hospital or the health care provider's facility when the woman ingests the first abortion drug or drugs necessary for a chemical abortion;

(iii)

Scheduling a follow
‑
up visit for the patient that occurs not later than seven (7) days after the administration or use of the abortion drug in order to assess the patient's condition;

(iv)

Providing a catch kit and medical waste bag to the patient, including instructions for the patient on how to use the catch kit and to bring the catch kit and medical waste bag to the health care provider for proper disposal.

(b)

Any health care provider who violates subsection (a) of this section shall be guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not to exceed three (3) years, a fine not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00), or both.

(c)

Subsections (a) and (b) of this section shall not apply to:

(i)

A pregnant woman who procures or attempts to procure a chemical abortion;

(ii)

Efforts by a health care provider to treat a diagnosed ectopic pregnancy.

(d)

Medical waste bags provided to pregnant women seeking a chemical abortion under this article shall:

(i)

Contain warning labels that state "BIOHAZARD" and the universal biological hazard symbol;

(ii)

Be fluorescent orange or orange
‑
red with lettering and symbols in a contrasting color.

35
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6
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203.

Applicability; conflict of laws.

If any provision of this article conflicts with the Life is a Human Right Act or W.S. 35
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6
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139, the provisions of the Life is a Human Right Act and W.S. 35
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6
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139 shall control over this article to the extent that the Life is a Human Right Act and W.S. 35
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6
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139 are enforceable.

35
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6
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204.

Prohibited acts; abortion drugs in wastewater.

(a)

No abortion drug shall enter wastewater or any public water supply, community water system or the waters of the state. The manufacturer or manufacturers of any abortion drug shall be responsible for ensuring proper disposal of discarded abortion drugs and for mitigating and remediating any environmental effects of abortion drugs, including endocrine
‑
disrupting chemical byproducts of abortion drugs, that may enter any disposal system, sewerage system, public water supply, community water system or the waters of the state as a result of the disposal of tainted human remains from at
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home abortions.

(b)

If endocrine
‑
disrupting chemicals from abortion drugs are found in wastewater, a public water supply, a community water system or the waters of the state, the manufacturer or manufacturers of the abortion drugs shall be strictly, absolutely, jointly and severally liable for the cleanup, remediation and any further preventative measures that the department of environmental quality may require. If a plaintiff who brings suit under this section is unable to identify the specific manufacturer of the abortion drug found in the wastewater, public water supply, community water system or waters of the state, then liability shall be apportioned among all manufacturers of abortion drugs in proportion to each manufacturer's share of the national production for abortion drugs at the time of the discovery.

(c)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law:

(i)

A person may bring an action under this section against a manufacturer or manufacturers of abortion drugs not later than six (6) years after the discovery of the abortion drug in the wastewater, public water supply, community water system or waters of the state;

(ii)

The following shall not be a defense to an action brought under this subsection:

(A)

Ignorance or mistake of the law;

(B)

A defendant's belief that the requirements or provisions of this article are or were unconstitutional;

(C)

A defendant's reliance on:

(I)

Any court decision that has been vacated, reversed or overruled on appeal or by a subsequent court, even if that court decision had not been vacated, reversed or overruled when the cause of action accrued;

(II)

Any state or federal court decision that is not binding on the court in which the action is brought;

(III)

Any federal statute, agency rule or action or treaty that has been repealed, superseded or declared invalid or unconstitutional, even if that federal statute, agency rule or action or treaty had not been repealed, superseded or declared invalid or unconstitutional when the cause of action accrued.

(D)

Nonmutual issue preclusion or nonmutual claim preclusion;

(E)

The consent of the plaintiff or the unborn baby's mother to the abortion, or the consent of one (1) or both of the parents of the unborn baby's mother to the abortion or the consent of the legal guardian of the unborn baby's mother to the abortion;

(F)

Contributory or comparative negligence;

(G)

Assumption of risk;

(H)

A lack of but
‑
for proximate causation;

(J)

Any claim that the enforcement of this article or the imposition of civil liability against the defendant will violate the constitutional rights of third parties, except as provided by subsection (d) of this section.

(iii)

The courts of this state shall have and may exercise personal jurisdiction over any defendant sued under this subsection to the maximum extent permitted by the Wyoming and United States constitutions;

(iv)

The law of the state of Wyoming shall apply to any action brought under this subsection to the maximum extent permitted by the United States constitution;

(v)

Any contractual choice
‑
of
‑
law provision that requires or purports to require the application of the laws of a different jurisdiction shall be void as against public policy and shall not be enforceable in any court.

(d)

A defendant against whom an action is brought under subsection (c) of this section may assert an affirmative defense to liability if the defendant demonstrates one (1) or more of the following by a preponderance of the evidence:

(i)

The imposition of civil liability on the defendant will violate constitutional or federally protected rights that belong to the defendant personally;

(ii)

The defendant has standing to assert the rights of a third party under the tests for third
‑
party standing established by the United States supreme court and demonstrates that the imposition of civil liability on the defendant will violate constitutional or federally protected rights belonging to that third party;

(iii)

The imposition of civil liability on the defendant will violate the Wyoming constitution, as interpreted by the Wyoming supreme court;

(iv)

The imposition of civil liability on the defendant would violate the limits on extraterritorial jurisdiction imposed by the United States constitution or the Wyoming constitution.

(e)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the following shall apply to any action, claim, counterclaim or any other type of legal or equitable action brought under this section:

(i)

The state and each of its officers and employees shall have sovereign immunity;

(ii)

The political subdivisions of the state and their officers and employees shall have governmental immunity;

(iii)

Each officer and employee of the state and its political subdivisions shall have official immunity, governmental immunity and sovereign immunity, as appropriate;

(iv)

The immunity conferred under this subsection shall apply to:

(A)

Any action, claim or counterclaim brought under this section;

(B)

Any type of legal or equitable action that challenges the validity of any provision or application of this section;

(C)

Any rule issued under this article, W.S. 35
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11
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302 or 35
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6
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133;

(D)

Any constitutional challenge brought challenging the validity of this article;

(E)

Any action that seeks to prevent or enjoin the state, its political subdivisions or any officer, employee or agent of the state or a political subdivision from enforcing any provision or application of this article, any rule issued under this article, W.S. 35
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11
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302 or 35
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6
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133 or from hearing, adjudicating or docketing a civil action brought under this section, unless the immunity has been abrogated or preempted by federal law in a manner consistent with the United States constitution.

(v)

The sovereign immunity conferred under this subsection shall include the constitutional sovereign immunity recognized by the United States supreme court in
Seminole Tribe v. Florida
, 517 U.S. 44 (1996) and
Alden v. Maine
, 527 U.S. 706 (1999), which applies in both state and federal court and which may not be abrogated by Congress or by any state or federal court except pursuant to congressional legislation authorized by section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States constitution, by the bankruptcy clause of article I of the United States constitution or by Congress's powers to raise and support armies and to provide and maintain a navy or by any other ground that might be recognized by the United States supreme court.

(f)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the immunity conferred under subsection (e) of this section shall apply in every court, both state and federal, and in every adjudicative proceeding of any type whatsoever.

(g)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no provision of state law shall be construed to waive or abrogate any immunity provided under subsection (e) of this section unless the state law expressly waives or abrogates the immunity provided in subsection (e) of this section.

(h)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no attorney representing the state or its political subdivisions or an officer, employee or agent thereof shall waive an immunity described in subsection (e) of this section or take any action that would result in an express or implied waiver of that immunity. Any action taken in violation of this subsection shall be regarded as a legal nullity and an ultra vires act.

(j)

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no court of this state shall award declaratory or injunctive relief or any type of state or writ, including a writ of prohibition, that would pronounce any provision or application of this article invalid or unconstitutional or that would restrain the state and its political subdivisions or any officer, employee or agent thereof from enforcing any provision or application of this article, any rule promulgated under W.S. 35
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11
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302 or 35
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6
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133 or from hearing, adjudicating, docketing or filing a civil action brought under this section. No court of this state shall have jurisdiction to consider any action, claim or counterclaim that seeks a form of relief specified in this subsection unless required by the Wyoming constitution and no action, claim or counterclaim brought for a form of relief specified in this subsection shall be litigated on behalf of a plaintiff or defendant class, notwithstanding rule 23 of the Wyoming rules of civil procedure. No court shall certify a plaintiff or defendant class in any action seeking the relief specified in this subsection.

(k)

Nothing in this article shall be construed to prevent a litigant from asserting the invalidity or unconstitutionality of any provision or application of this article as a defense to any action, claim or counterclaim brought against that litigant.

(m)

Recognizing
Leavitt v. Jane L.
, 518 U.S. 137 (1996), where the United States supreme court held that, in the context of determining the severability of a state statute regulating abortion, an explicit statement of legislative intent is controlling, it is the intent of the legislature that every provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or word in this article, and every application of the provisions of this article to every person, group of persons or circumstances, are severable from each other. The following shall apply to this article:

(i)

If any application of any provision in this article to any person, group of persons or circumstances is found by a court to be invalid, preempted or unconstitutional for any reason whatsoever, then the remaining applications of that provision to all other persons and circumstances shall be severed and preserved and shall remain in effect. All constitutionally valid applications of the provisions in this article shall be severed from any applications that a court finds to be invalid, preempted or unconstitutional because it is the legislature's intent and priority that every single valid application of every statutory provision be allowed to stand alone;

(ii)

The legislature further declares that it would have enacted this article and each provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or word, and all constitutional applications of the provisions of this article, irrespective of the fact that any provision, section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or word, or applications of this article, were declared to be invalid, preempted or unconstitutional;

(iii)

If any provision of this article is found by any court to be unconstitutionally vague, then the applications of that provision that do not present unconstitutional vagueness problems shall be severed and remain in force, consistent with the severability requirements of this subsection;

(iv)

No court shall decline to enforce the severability requirements of this subsection on the ground that severing would rewrite the statute or involve the court in legislative or lawmaking activity. A court that declines to enforce or that enjoins a state official from enforcing a statutory provision is never rewriting a statute or engaging in legislative or lawmaking activity, as the statute continues to contain the same words as before the court's decision. A judicial injunction or declaration of unconstitutionality:

(A)

Is nothing more than an edict prohibiting enforcement of the disputed statute against the named parties to that lawsuit, which may subsequently be vacated by a later court if that court has a different understanding of the requirements of the Wyoming constitution or the United States constitution;

(B)

Is not a formal amendment of the language in a statute; and

(C)

No more rewrites a statute than a decision by the executive branch not to enforce a duly enacted statute in a limited and defined set of circumstances.

(v)

If any state or federal court disregards any of the severability requirements of this subsection and declares or finds any provision of this article facially invalid, preempted or unconstitutional when there are discrete applications of that provision that can be enforced against a person, group of persons or circumstances without violating federal law, the United States constitution or the Wyoming constitution, then that provision shall be interpreted, as a matter of state law, as if the legislature had enacted a provision limited to the persons, group of persons or circumstances for which the provision's application will not violate federal law, the United States constitution or the Wyoming constitution. Every court and every state official shall adopt this saving construction of that provision until the court ruling that pronounced the provision facially invalid, preempted or unconstitutional is vacated, overruled or abrogated.

Section 2.

W.S. 35
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6
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133 and 35
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11
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302(a) by creating a new paragraph (xii) are amended to read:

35
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6
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133.

Rules and regulations for disposal of bodies and parts thereof.

The state department of health
may
shall
prescribe rules and regulations for the disposal of the bodies, tissues, organs and parts thereof of an unborn child, human fetus or human embryo which has been aborted.

35
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11
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302.

Administrator's authority to recommend standards, rules, regulations or permits.

(a)

The administrator, after receiving public comment and after consultation with the advisory board, shall recommend to the director rules, regulations, standards and permit systems to promote the purposes of this act. Such rules, regulations, standards and permit systems shall prescribe:

(xii)

Standards for the collection and disposal of discarded abortion drugs as defined by W.S. 35
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6
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201(a)(ii) and for the mitigation and remediation necessary to address the environmental effects of abortion drugs that are discharged into any disposal system, sewerage system, public water supply, community water system or the waters of the state. Rules promulgated under this paragraph shall include requirements for the testing of community water systems and public water supplies to ensure that endocrine
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disrupting chemical byproducts of abortion drugs do not enter a water system or water supply.

Section 3
.

(a)

The department of health shall promulgate all rules within its authority necessary to implement this act.

(b)

The environmental quality council, upon recommendation from the department of environmental quality, shall promulgate all rules within its authority necessary to implement this act.

Section 4
.

This act is effective immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.

(END)

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HB0159