The Michigan Catholic Conference is the official public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Michigan. MCC’s Lansing Update publishes when the Michigan Legislature is in session and chronicles legislative activity of interest to the MCC. To begin receiving Lansing Update directly, sign up for the Catholic Legislative Advocacy Network.

In this week’s update: Partial Birth Abortion Ban Moves to Full House and House Commerce Committee Addresses E-Verify Immigration Legislation. 

Partial Birth Abortion Ban Moves to Full House 

Michigan would be among the growing number of states to outlaw the gruesome practice of partial-birth abortion if the Legislature moves to support House Bills 4109-4110 after the House Families, Children and Seniors Committee this week passed the bill out to the full House of Representatives.

The legislation mirrors the federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act that passed Congress and was deemed constitutional by the United States Supreme Court in 2007.The issue has been on ongoing one in Michigan as the legislature on four occasions has passed, overwhelmingly with bipartisan support, a ban on the procedure—only to face the veto pen or to be ruled unconstitutional by the judicial branch.

While HBs 4109-4110 await consideration from the full House, the state Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this year also passed legislation to ban partial-birth abortion in Michigan. It is not clear at this time if the House or Senate bill will be the primary legislation that moves through the entire Legislature, which is considerably pro-life. Governor Rick Snyder has indicated his support for the legislation. A statement from the Conference praising the House committee for passing the bill can be read here.

House Commerce Committee Addresses E-Verify Immigration Legislation

Legislation that would mandate all employers in the state to verify the citizenship of foreign-born persons was addressed by the House Commerce Committee this week as several prominent organizations, including Michigan Catholic Conference, prepared to testify against the bills.

E-verify is a federal program that allows employers to verify citizenship status of prospective employees. Many states across the country have addressed this mandate, with states such as Georgia and Alabama recently enacting the proposals. However, statistics prove that E-Verify is a highly flawed system that is prone to error and has separated families and turned away workers erroneously.

Michigan Catholic Conference is prepared to testify against the bills in committee with a message that not only is E-Verify a flawed program but, more importantly, immigration is a federal matter and as such Congress must soon pursue and enact comprehensive immigration reform.

House Bills 4024 and 4026, sponsored by State Representative Dave Agema (R-Grandville) will likely return to the committee for further testimony in the fall.