The Public Record:
Congressman Dan Burton's record supporting the Right to Life

National Right to Life vote scorecard:
The ultimate goal of the National Right to Life Committee is to restore legal protection to innocent human life. The primary interest of the National Right to Life Committee and its members has been the abortion controversy; however, it is also concerned with related matters of medical ethics, which relate to the right to life.

109th Congress (2005-2006) 100%
108th Congress (2003-2004) 86%
107th Congress (2001-2002) 100%
106th Congress (1999-2000) 100%
105th Congress (1997-1998) 100%

Right to Life Bills that the Congressman has co-sponsored

110th Congress

• H.R. 618
Title: Right to Life Act
Sponsor: Rep Hunter, Duncan [R-CA-52] (introduced 1/22/2007) Cosponsors: 74

This bill declares that every human being is entitled to a right to life, including babies not yet born.

• H.R. 1063
Title: Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act
Sponsor: Rep Ros-Lehtinen, Ileana [R-FL-18] (introduced 2/15/2007) Cosponsors: 118

This bill criminalizes the transportation of a minor across state lines to have an abortion, unless the abortion is to save the minor’s life.

• H.R. 1457
Title: Post-Abortion Depression Research and Care Act
Sponsor: Rep Pitts, Joseph R. [R-PA-16] (introduced 9/25/2006) Cosponsors: 24

This bill requires studies to be performed on the mental health consequences for women who have had abortions.

109th Congress

• H.R. 356
Title: Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2005
Sponsor: Rep Smith, Christopher H. [R-NJ-4] (introduced 1/25/2005) Cosponsors: 142

This bill requires that physicians performing abortions advise their patients that the fetus they wish to abort could likely feel pain. It makes exceptions for medical emergencies.

108th Congress

• H.R. 195
Title: Informed Choice Act
Sponsor: Rep Stearns, Cliff [R-FL-6] (introduced 1/7/2003) Cosponsors: 53

This bill authorized the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to community-based non-profits to assist women in the early stages of pregnancy, and to provide them with ultrasound machinery as well as advice on alternatives to abortion.

• H.R. 760
Title: Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003
Sponsor: Rep Chabot, Steve [R-OH-1] (introduced 2/13/2003) Cosponsors: 161

This bill prohibits physicians from performing partial birth abortions.

• H.R. 1997
Title: Laci and Conner's Law
Sponsor: Rep Hart, Melissa A. [R-PA-4] (introduced 5/7/2003) Cosponsors: 136

This bill was previously known as the Unborn Victims of Violence Act. It was named Laci and Conner’s Law after the death of Laci Peterson who was murdered while pregnant with a son, Connor. The bill states that a person who kills a pregnant woman will also be guilty of a second murder.

107th Congress

• H. J. Res. 20
Title: Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States with respect to the right to life.
Sponsor: Rep Oberstar, James L. [D-MN-8] (introduced 2/14/2001) Cosponsors: 34

This bill amended the term “person” in the 5th and 14th amendments of the Constitution to include the unborn.

• H.R. 2175
Title: Born-Alive Infants Protection Act of 2002
Sponsor: Rep Chabot, Steve [R-OH-1] (introduced 6/14/2001) Cosponsors: 105

This bill stated that, in determining the meaning of any Act of Congress or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various U.S. administrative bureaus and agencies, the words "person," "human being," "child," and "individual" included every infant member of the species homo sapiens who is born alive at any stage of development.

• H.R. 4691
Title: Abortion Non-Discrimination Act of 2002
Sponsor: Rep Bilirakis, Michael [R-FL-9] (introduced 5/9/2002) Cosponsors: 97

This bill states that doctors who refuse to perform abortions can’t be discriminated against by agencies which receive money from the federal government.

106th Congress

• H.R. 2901
Title: Women and Children's Resources Act
Sponsor: Rep Pitts, Joseph R. [R-PA-16] (introduced 9/21/1999) Cosponsors: 28

This bill requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to States for programs designed to provide alternative-to-abortion services.

• H.R. 3980
Title:Human Fetal Tissue Reporting and Disclosure Act of 2000
Sponsor: Rep Coburn, Tom A. [R-OK-2] (introduced 3/15/2000)
Cosponsors: 31

This bill required that entities which received fetal tissue for any purpose, other than solely for purpose of pathological examination, be obligated to file a disclosure statement with the Secretary of Health and Human Services that contains: (1) a list of each entity that has obtained possession of the tissue prior to possession by the filing entity; (2) a description of the use to be made of such tissue and the end user; (3) a verification that the tissue was obtained with the donor's legal consent; (4) a description of the type of tissue involved, including a determination of whether it was obtained from an induced abortion; (5) a description of the quantity of tissue involved; (6) a description of the money or any other consideration of value transferred as a result of the transference of the tissue; and (7) any other information determined appropriate by the Secretary.

105th Congress

All of the Right-to-Life bills introduced into this Congress were introduced in later Congresses, and are detailed above.

104th Congress

• H.R. 222
Title: To prohibit the Secretary of Health and Human Services from finding that a State Medicaid plan is not in compliance with title XIX of the Social Security Act solely on the grounds that the plan does not cover abortions for pregnancies resulting from an act of rape or incest if coverage for such abortions is inconsistent with State law.
Sponsor: Rep Dickey, Jay [R-AR-4] (introduced 1/4/1995) Cosponsors: 21

This bill would have prohibited the Secretary of Health and Human Services from finding that a State Medicaid plan fails to meet Medicaid requirements solely because it does not cover abortions for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest if coverage for such an abortion is inconsistent with State law.

103rd Congress

• H.R. 562
Title: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to deny the deduction for medical expenses incurred for an abortion.
Sponsor: Rep Dornan, Robert K. [R-CA-46] (introduced 1/25/1993) Cosponsors: 19

This bill would have amended the Internal Revenue Code to deny the use of the medical expense deduction for abortions, except for procedures to prevent the death of either the pregnant woman or her preborn child so long as every reasonable effort is made to preserve the life of each.

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