II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4688 

To guarantee that Americans have the freedom to make certain reproductive 

decisions without undue government interference. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 1, 2022 

Mr. KAINE (for himself, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Ms. SINEMA, and Ms. COLLINS) 

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To guarantee that Americans have the freedom to make 

certain reproductive decisions without undue government 

interference. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Reproductive Freedom 

5 for All Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

7 It is the purpose of this Act to guarantee that Ameri8 cans have the freedom to make certain reproductive deci9 sions without undue government interference, consistent 


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1 with the essential holdings of Griswold v. Connecticut (381 

2 U.S. 479 (1965)), Eisenstadt v. Baird (405 U.S. 438 

3 (1972)), Roe v. Wade (410 U.S. 113 (1973)), Carey v. 

4 Population Services International (431 U.S. 678 (1977)), 

5 Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. 

6 Casey (505 U.S. 833 (1992)), and Whole Woman’s Health 

7 v. Hellerstedt (579 U.S. 582 (2016)). 

8 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

9 Congress finds the following: 

10 (1) For decades, the Supreme Court of the 

11 United States has held that the liberty protected by 

12 the Fourteenth Amendment encompasses a right to 

13 make certain reproductive decisions without undue 

14 government interference. 

15 (2) While these precedents have advanced 

16 slightly different constitutional rationales, and have 

17 acknowledged that some government regulation is 

18 acceptable, they have created a society whereby 

19 Americans expect to make certain reproductive deci20 sions without undue government interference. Gen21 erations of American women have relied on the fact 

22 that they have the freedom to make such choices as 

23 a matter of fundamental personal right. 

24 (3) The right to make certain reproductive deci25 sions without undue government interference should 


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1 be guaranteed for all Americans, consistent with the 

2 Fourteenth Amendment’s guarantee of equal protec3 tion and due process under the law. 

4 (4) The Supreme Court has recently reversed 

5 five decades of jurisprudence in Dobbs v. Jackson 

6 Women’s Health Organization (142 S. Ct. 2228 

7 (2022)), concluding that questions related to the le8 gality of abortion services are a matter for legislative 

9 action rather than constitutional protection. 

10 (5) In light of the Dobbs ruling that the legality 

11 of abortion services is now a matter of legislative ac12 tion, it is appropriate to enact the essential holdings 

13 of the cases referred to in section 2 so that Ameri14 cans are guaranteed the freedom to make the repro15 ductive decisions discussed therein. The absence of 

16 such a guarantee has a profound effect upon the 

17 quality of Americans’ lives, particularly the lives of 

18 women. As such, this action is an appropriate exer19 cise of the Congressional power established in sec20 tion 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Con21 stitution of the United States. By continuing to pro22 tect their reliance on fundamental reproductive 

23 rights, such a guarantee will improve the general 

24 welfare for generations of American women. 


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1 (6) Enacting this guarantee is also justified as 

2 congressional regulation of interstate commerce be3 cause contraception and abortion services are eco4 nomic transactions that frequently involve the ship5 ment of goods, the provision of services, and the 

6 travel of persons across State lines. 

7 SEC. 4. REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—All persons shall have the right 

9 to make certain reproductive decisions without undue gov10 ernment interference, consistent with the provisions of this 

11 Act. 

12 (b) AUTHORITY.—A State— 

13 (1) shall not prohibit an individual from obtain14 ing or using contraceptives or contraceptive care; 

15 (2) shall not impose an undue burden on the 

16 ability of a woman to choose whether or not to ter17 minate a pregnancy before fetal viability; 

18 (3) may regulate the termination of a preg19 nancy after fetal viability, provided that a State 

20 shall not prohibit the termination of a pregnancy 

21 that, in the appropriate medical judgment of the at22 tending health care practitioner or practitioners, is 

23 medically indicated to protect the life or health of 

24 the pregnant woman; and 


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1 (4) may enact reasonable regulations to further 

2 the health or safety of a woman seeking to terminate 

3 a pregnancy, unless such regulations impose an 

4 undue burden pursuant to paragraph (2). 

5 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act 

6 shall be construed to have any effect on laws regarding 

7 conscience protection. 

8 SEC. 5. ENFORCEMENT. 

9 The Attorney General of the United States or any 

10 person adversely affected by State laws passed in con11 travention of this Act may seek injunctive relief in a Fed12 eral district or State court. In any action or proceeding 

13 under this section, the court, in its discretion, may allow 

14 the prevailing party, other than the United States, a rea15 sonable attorney’s fee as part of the costs. 

16 SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—In this Act: 

18 (1) FETAL VIABILITY.—The term ‘‘fetal viabil19 ity’’ means the time at which, in the appropriate 

20 medical judgment of the attending health care prac21 titioner or practitioners, there is a realistic possi22 bility of maintaining and nourishing a life outside 

23 the womb. 

24 (2) REASONABLE.—The term ‘‘reasonable’’ 

25 with respect to a regulation referred to in paragraph 


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1 (4) of section 4(b), means that the regulation is con2 sistent with the essential holdings of the cases re3 ferred to in section 2. 

4 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes the 

5 District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 

6 Rico, and each other territory or possession of the 

7 United States, and any subdivision of any of the 

8 foregoing. 

9 (b) UNDUE BURDEN.—For purposes of this Act, an 

10 undue burden shall be deemed to exist, and the related 

11 provision of law shall be invalid under section 4, if the 

12 purpose or effect of such law is to place a substantial ob13 stacle in the path of a woman seeking to terminate a preg14 nancy before fetal viability. 

15 SEC. 7. SEVERABILITY. 

16 If any provision of this Act, or the application of such 

17 provision to any person or circumstance is held to be in18 valid, the remainder of this Act and the application of the 

19 provisions of such to any person or circumstance shall not 

20 be affected thereby. 

Æ 


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