106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3660
AN ACT
To amend title 18, United States Code, to ban
partial-birth abortions.
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3660
AN ACT
To amend title 18, United States Code, to ban partial-
birth abortions.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Partial-Birth Abortion
Ban Act of 2000’’.
SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON PARTIAL-BIRTH ABORTIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 18, United States Code, is
amended by inserting after chapter 73 the following:
‘‘CHAPTER 74—PARTIAL-BIRTH ABORTIONS
‘‘Sec.
‘‘1531. Partial-birth abortions prohibited.
‘‘§ 1531. Partial-birth abortions prohibited
‘‘(a) Any physician who, in or affecting interstate or
foreign commerce, knowingly performs a partial-birth
abortion and thereby kills a human fetus shall be fined
under this title or imprisoned not more than 2 years, or
both. This paragraph shall not apply to a partial-birth
abortion that is necessary to save the life of a mother
whose life is endangered by a physical disorder, illness,
or injury. This paragraph shall become effective 1 day
after the enactment.
‘‘(b)(1) As used in this section, the term ‘partial-birth
abortion’ means an abortion in which the person per-
forming the abortion deliberately and intentionally—
‘‘(A) vaginally delivers some portion of an in-
tact living fetus until the fetus is partially outside
the body of the mother, for the purpose of per-
forming an overt act that the person knows will kill
the fetus while the fetus is partially outside the body
of the mother; and
‘‘(B) performs the overt act that kills the fetus
while the intact living fetus is partially outside the
body of the mother.
‘‘(2) As used in this section, the term ‘physician’
means a doctor of medicine or osteopathy legally author-
ized to practice medicine and surgery by the State in
which the doctor performs such activity, or any other indi-
vidual legally authorized by the State to perform abor-
tions: Provided, however, That any individual who is not
a physician or not otherwise legally authorized by the
State to perform abortions, but who nevertheless directly
performs a partial-birth abortion, shall be subject to the
provisions of this section.
‘‘(c)(1) The father, if married to the mother at the
time she receives a partial-birth abortion procedure, and
if the mother has not attained the age of 18 years at the
time of the abortion, the maternal grandparents of the
fetus, may in a civil action obtain appropriate relief, unless
the pregnancy resulted from the plaintiff’s criminal con-
duct or the plaintiff consented to the abortion.
‘‘(2) Such relief shall include—
‘‘(A) money damages for all injuries, psycho-
logical and physical, occasioned by the violation of
this section; and
‘‘(B) statutory damages equal to three times
the cost of the partial-birth abortion.
‘‘(d)(1) A defendant accused of an offense under this
section may seek a hearing before the State Medical Board
on whether the physician’s conduct was necessary to save
the life of the mother whose life was endangered by a
physical disorder, illness or injury.
‘‘(2) The findings on that issue are admissible on that
issue at the trial of the defendant. Upon a motion of the
defendant, the court shall delay the beginning of the trial
for not more than 30 days to permit such a hearing to
take place.
‘‘(e) A woman upon whom a partial-birth abortion is
performed may not be prosecuted under this section, for
a conspiracy to violate this section, or for an offense under
section 2, 3, or 4 of this title based on a violation of this
section.’’.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of chapters
for part I of title 18, United States Code, is amended by
inserting after the item relating to chapter 73 the fol-
lowing new item:
‘‘74. Partial-birth abortions ........................................................... 1531’’.
Passed the House of Representatives April 5, 2000.
Attest:
Clerk.