Virginia governor rejects bill cutting taxpayer funding for Planned Parenthood

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has vetoed a bill on Tuesday that would have cut off taxpayer funding for the abortion provider Planned Parenthood.

Virginia House Bill 2264 was approved by the House by a vote of 60–33 and the Senate by a vote of 20–19. The measure was aimed at stripping federal Title X funding from Planned Parenthood and any other group that performs abortions. The tax dollars would then be redirected to community health clinics that provide comprehensive care and do not conduct abortions.

McAuliffe stated that the legislation would harm thousands of Virginians who rely on Planned Parenthood for health care, Life News reported. Last year, he held a high-profile event, in which he vetoed a similar bill.

"Attempts to restrict women's access to health care will impede the goal of making Virginia the best place to live, work, and run a business," the governor said in a statement on Tuesday.

Victoria Cobb, president of the Family Foundation of Virginia pointed out that there are more than 140 federally qualified clinics in Virginia that offer comprehensive services to women, and many of them are in areas where there are no Planned Parenthood clinics.

State Del. Ben Cline (R-Amherst), the sponsor of the bill, said that the measure would ensure that hospitals and health clinics are funded before abortion centers.

Following the veto, Cline expressed hope that the Virginia General Assembly would override McAuliffe's decision.

"This important legislation would have prioritized taxpayer dollars toward providers of more comprehensive health care services, and the governor's veto undermines those efforts to improve health care in rural and underserved areas," he said, according to Catholic News Agency.

The Virginia Catholic Conference decried the rejection of the bill, saying the governor's actions "harm the dignity of the women deceived by the multi-billion dollar abortion industry as well as the tiniest females, those still in the womb whose lives are brutally eliminated by abortion."

The veto came after the House of Representatives overturned President Barack Obama's HHS rule that prohibits individual states from defunding Planned Parenthood and other organizations that perform abortions.

The U.S. Congress is also working on legislation that would redirect tax dollars to federally-qualified community health clinics that offer more comprehensive care but do not perform abortions.