News Release: Court of Claims Ruling Further Clarifies Devious Intent of Proposal 3

(Lansing, Mich.) — A ruling today from a Michigan Court of Claims judge that strikes down state laws written to provide women with information about abortion is the result of the passage of Proposal 3 in 2022 that has likely granted the abortion industry constitutional protection from regulation or limitations, according to the Michigan Catholic Conference (MCC).

Following the 2022 ballot proposal’s passage, pro-abortion advocates have acted through both the courts and the Legislature to overturn policies that have been in effect for at least three decades and are widely supported by the public.

“Today the broader public is seeing more clearly that the intent of the 2022 ballot proposal was not to ‘protect what was legal under Roe,’ but rather to grant constitutional protections to an industry that places itself above the health and safety of women and the lives of pre-born children,” said Paul A. Long, president and CEO of Michigan Catholic Conference.

In Northland Family Planning Center v. Nessel, the presiding judge today permanently enjoined and declared unconstitutional a 1993 state law requiring a 24-hour waiting period prior to an abortion and another that provides educational material about abortion risks to women. The laws were overturned based on the constitutional nature of Proposal 3, despite the Michigan Court of Appeals having previously upheld the informed consent policy in the 1990s.

Today’s ruling also invalidates a requirement that only licensed physicians perform abortions.

The lawsuit that led to today’s decision was filed after legislative efforts in 2023 to eliminate the policies were unsuccessful. Lawmakers and pro-abortion advocacy groups who pushed for the so-called Reproductive Health Act in 2023 were forced to drop the proposed repeal of the 24-hour waiting period for the bill package to receive enough votes to pass the Legislature. Abortion advocates then turned to the courts and filed the Northland case to remove the regulations from the books.

“This decision is a tragic reminder that the normalization of abortion in Michigan exists to the detriment of some 31,000 children every year who will never have the opportunity to experience the gift and blessings of life,” said Long. “Now, more than ever, we encourage others to envision a world where human life at every stage—from conception to a natural end—is truly cherished and protected, where expecting mothers are supported with love and care and have access to maternal needs, regardless of the circumstance of the pregnancy.”

Two more policies that pro-abortion organizations seek to overturn are Michigan’s 1990 parental consent law, which requires children younger than 18 to have the permission of a parent prior to procuring an abortion, and a 1988 law that prohibits the state from using taxpayer dollars—via the state Medicaid program—to pay for abortions. The latter of which is already under litigation after a lawsuit was filed by the ACLU of Michigan on behalf of the YWCA of Kalamazoo in June 2024.

Michigan Catholic Conference is the official public policy voice of the Catholic Church in this state.

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