A STATEMENT FROM THE UNITED UTAH PARTY RE: SEN. DAN McCAY’S PROPOSED ABORTION LEGISLATION
The United Utah Party has issued the following statement:
Sen. Dan McCay has announced that he is drafting legislation on abortion that would be similar to controversial laws passed in Alabama and other states. He has stated that he is “unsure” whether his legislation will include exceptions for rape, incest, or even to save the life of the mother.
This should be troubling to everyone in Utah, regardless of party.
Like most Utahns, The United Utah Party opposes elective abortion in most circumstances, but we believe there must be the availability of exceptions for instances such as cases of rape or incest or when a mother’s life or health is in serious jeopardy. This is a part of our party platform, which is available at unitedutah.org.
The recent spate of laws across the country do not allow for those exceptions, and Sen. McCay’s divisive rhetoric suggests that he is more interested in crafting a similar law that would pander to partisan extremes instead of representing the will of the majority of Utah voters.
That’s unacceptable. We can do better.
We call on Senator McCay and the Utah Legislature to reject extremism and to find solutions that prioritize the health and welfare of both women and their children. If legislators intend to pass legislation regarding abortion to challenge the Roe v. Wade decision, we urge them to include the exceptions we note. Also, we believe that abortion facilities, particularly hospitals, should be available to women who meet these exceptions. In addition, we urge the legislature to support legislation that makes alternative birth control options besides abortion more available to women, such as codifying the Utah Department of Health policy that allows women to gain access to birth control without a prescription.
For more information, visit unitedutah.org.
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It’s been a very busy week for CER, and with a hat tip to Clint Eastwood we send along examples of the good, the bad and the ugly from this week's news.
Jeanne Allen’s latest piece in Forbes highlights the good – in fact the very good. Alpha Academy in Fayetteville, North Carolina is innovating education oppurtunity and bringing exciting solutions to schooling for the close to 1,000 students the serve, mainly minority and economically disadvantaged.
The very bad and very ugly are highlighted in the Washington Post editorial, calling out the D.C. Deputy Mayor of Education for displacing and forcing the closure of a high performing pre-school. The Post headline says it all, “Children are suffering because D.C. won’t look out for public charter schools.”
Learn more about how CER has been defending the rights of parents and teachers for 25 years at www.edreform.com.
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Founded in 1993, the Center for Education Reform aims to expand educational opportunities that lead to improved economic outcomes for all Americans — particularly our youth — ensuring that conditions are ripe for innovation, freedom and flexibility throughout U.S. education.
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Thursday, June 20th Stories:
Signing Ceremony Sets Terms of NBAF Transfer From Homeland Security to USDA
Washington, D.C., June 20, 2019) – Officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) today signed a Memorandum of Agreement (PDF, 166 KB) that formally outlines how the departments will transfer ownership and operational responsibility for the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) from DHS’ Science and Technology Directorate to USDA.
The agreement was signed by USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Greg Ibach, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics Scott Hutchins, and DHS Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Under Secretary for Science and Technology William Bryan.
When completed, NBAF will be a biosafety level-4 laboratory in Manhattan, Kansas, for the study of diseases that threaten both U.S. agriculture and public health.
Under the terms of the memorandum, DHS retains responsibility for completing construction and commissioning of the $1.25 billion facility, while USDA will assume responsibility for all operational planning and eventual operation of the facility. DHS’ efforts are on schedule and on budget to complete construction in December 2020 and to complete commissioning in May 2021, when ownership of NBAF will be formally transferred to USDA.
“It’s a real honor for USDA to have the operational stewardship of NBAF. We look forward to working with Members of Congress, our private sector partners, and our academic partners in this area as we take over operations. USDA will make this a facility that America can be proud of,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue.
“NBAF will be the first facility in the United States with maximum biocontainment, BSL-4 labs, where we can develop vaccines and diagnostics for high-consequence animal diseases – including those that can also affect human health,” Ibach said. “These expanded capabilities will enable us to be more dynamic and flexible in responding to disease threats—wherever they come from, whatever they look like.”
“All security starts with food security,” Hutchins said. “Few countries have as successful a history of protecting agriculture and their food supply from both intentional and unintentional threats as does the United States - with NBAF, we are doubling-down on this mission. This will be a unique, state-of-the-art national security asset where we will practice state-of-the-science research to avert and address critical bio-risks to U.S. agriculture.”
“The DHS/USDA partnership on NBAF extends back to the initial planning in 2006. That partnership has remained throughout the DHS-led acquisition process and will endure after USDA initiates operation of the facility,” said DHS’ Bryan. “The capabilities provided by NBAF are critical in the ongoing efforts to protect the nation’s food supply, and agriculture economy. As noted by the National Academies of Science in a 2012 review of the NBAF Program, the NBAF design provides the ‘ideal functionality’ to address the stated mission needs.”
The state-of-the-art NBAF facility will replace the aging Plum Island Animal Disease Center in New York. The Manhattan, Kansas, site strategically places it near the largest concentration of animal health companies in the world, providing access to important veterinary, agricultural and biosecurity research and expertise.
Also released at today’s event was a document outlining USDA’s strategic vision for NBAF (PDF, 5.7 MB). It summarizes how NBAF will serve as a national biosecurity asset to protect human and animal health, food safety and the ag economy.
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