Date: 2015-04-30
Speaker: CAROLYN B. MALONEY (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New York

Madam Speaker. this resolution is an insult to women everywhere. What business is it of an employeror anyone else. for that matterto know whether or not workers or their daughters are taking birth control? It is absolutely none of their business. And it also makes a mockery of the majority partys oft repeated claims that it wishes to scale back the overreach of the Federal Government. yet here they are reaching into personal lives. And the resolution is being proposed by the socalled party of states rights. They are not proposing a Federal law. They are trying to override the decisions of elected officials in the District of Columbia. Why should the Congress have the right to override the democratic decisions of people in our Nations Capital? A city with more people than the State of Wyoming and larger than Vermont gets no voting Senators or Congressmember in this body. This offensive effort to intrude into the most intimate of decisions of a womans life sends a loud and clear message from the majority that they think a womans employer does get a say in a womans reproductive healthcare choices. even though the Supreme Court. the Constitution. and women all across this country think that they do not. This resolution would give an employer coercive power to intrude on a womans private decisions about birth control. in vitro fertilization. and abortion. They are activities that obviously happen off the job and decisions that have no bearing whatsoever on a persons ability to do her job. The District of Columbias Reproductive Health NonDiscrimination Amendment Act does not diminish the right of religious freedom. This new D.C. law is modest in its scope. It simply protects an employees right to selfdetermination. It handles a perceived conflict between two differing claims to rights in a simple and straightforward way. I urge a "no" vote to this new low and public policy. Madam Speaker. this resolution is an insult to women everywhere. What business is it of an employeror anyone else for that matterto know whether or not workers or their daughters are taking birth control? It is none of your business. And it also makes a mockery of the majority partys oft repeated claims that it wishes to scale back what it calls the overreach of the Federal government this offensive effort to intrude into the most intimate of decisions of a womans lifesends a loud and clear message from the Majority that they think a womans employer does get a say in a womans reproductive health care choices. Even though the Supreme Court. the Constitution and women all across the country think you dont. This resolution would give an employer coercive power to intrude on a womans private decisions about birth control. in vitro fertilization. and abortion. They are activities that obviously happen off the job and decisions that have no bearing whatsoever on a womans ability to do her job. The District of Columbias Reproductive Health NonDiscrimination Amendment Act does not diminish the right of religious freedom. This new DC law is modest in its scopeit simply protects a employees right to selfdetermination. It handles a perceived conflict between two differing claims to rights in a simple and straightforward way. An employer has the right to hold whatever belief his conscience dictatesbut he does not have the right to discriminate against employees based on their private choice to use birth control. in vitro fertilization. or abortion. The DC law received a unanimous vote on the DC Council and was even revised to make it clear that it would not force an employer to provide insurance coverage for contraceptive or abortion coverage. And while this resolution might just affect women and their families here in our nations capital. women across the U.S. should be very much alarmed: Because if this resolution standsCan there be any doubttheyre coming for you next. I urge my colleagues to consider the ways this resolution would threaten the jobs and economic security of hardworking DC residents. and to oppose this absurd. discriminatory resolution.