Abortion-rights advocates are asking the Montana Supreme Court to force the secretary of state to allow signature-collecting to begin on a ballot initiative. It’s the latest in a fast-moving legal back-and-forth ahead of a June deadline to collect signatures needed to certify the constitutional initiative to protect abortion access for the ballot.
Republican Senate President Jason Ellsworth on Tuesday subpoenaed Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen to send the initiative’s language to a legislative committee. There, lawmakers would have up to two weeks to perform a legislative review.
But, state Supreme Court justices suggested in a recent opinion Jacobsen could certify the initiative without legislative input.
Plaintiffs asked the court to clarify the status of the initiative by the end of Wednesday.
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A Helena judge struck down several laws restricting abortion access and ruled they’re unconstitutional. The laws and one state health department rule were adopted by Republican policymakers in 2023. -
Montana lawmakers are once again considering bills that would restrict abortion access. Some of the legislation may directly conflict with the state’s new voter-approved constitutional right to abortion. -
Montana voters approved a constitutional amendment in November to protect access to abortion. What would federal anti-abortion laws mean for Montana's new amendment? -
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on whether minors can get an abortion without parental consent. -
Montana abortion providers will not be subject to new, stringent regulations adopted by the state health department. A judge blocked the rules while a lawsuit plays out. Two Montana clinics sued the state, saying they’ve been singled out for stricter regulation as abortion providers.
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A Lewis and Clark District Court judge says he’ll likely decide in the coming days whether to block regulations on abortion providers passed by the last state Legislature.
