In anticipation of the upcoming Texas legislative session, State Representative Ana-Maria Ramos has introduced House Joint Resolution 80, which calls for a constitutional amendment to protect abortion and in vitro fertilization (IVF). The amendment allows elective abortions up to the point of fetal viability, typically around 24 weeks, while permitting abortions beyond that threshold to protect the mother’s health at a physician’s discretion. Additionally, it guarantees all Texans the right to access “assisted reproductive technology treatments,” such as IVF. The amendment would reverse the state’s near-total abortion ban.
Texas implemented its abortion ban in 2022 after the Dobbs v. Jackson decision returned abortion policy to the states. Under Chapter 170A of the Texas Health and Safety Code, abortions are solely permissible if the mother is at risk of death or faces “substantial impairment of a major bodily function.” The law imposes penalties for providing illegal abortions, including first-degree felony charges and a civil penalty of at least $100,000. In light of multiple deaths, pro-choice advocates have argued that these penalties create a chilling effect in which physicians fear intervening even in life-threatening situations.
Nevertheless, the amendment extends well beyond addressing these concerns, permitting abortions until the end of the second trimester. State Representative Ramos supports substantially broader abortion access rather than reinforcing protections for cases in which the mother’s life is in danger. Ramos says she is “introducing this legislation to keep Big-Government Republicans out of our doctor’s offices and allow Texans to make their own choices about their bodies.”
Under the Texas Constitution, the amendment must pass both legislative chambers with a two-thirds majority—21 of 31 senators and 100 of 150 representatives—before it can appear on the November 4, 2025, ballot. It must then win approval from a simple majority of voters in a statewide referendum. However, with only 63 Democrats in the House and 12 in the Senate, the resolution is highly unlikely to receive the required supermajority. Compounding these challenges, a February 2024 Texas Politics Project poll found that only 45% of Texans support loosening abortion restrictions, while 48% favor either maintaining or increasing current limitations.
Texas remains one of 12 states that have a near-total abortion ban. In the most recent election, Missouri voters overturned the state’s absolute prohibition, enshrining protections for abortion until fetal viability in the Missouri Constitution.
