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Baltimore Puts Heat on Crisis Pregnancy Centers

By Julia Marsh, WeNews correspondent
Wednesday, December 2, 2009

In late November the Baltimore City Council ordered crisis pregnancy centers to post disclaimers and a Maryland county council will debate a similar bill Dec. 10. Pro-choice activists hope other local governments will follow suit.
BALTIMORE (WOMENSENEWS)--Alexa Cole, an organizer for pro-choice NARAL California, watched closely as Maryland counterparts shepherded a first of its kind bill through the Baltimore City Council.

The bill requires the four crisis pregnancy centers located in the city to post disclaimers that clarify what they don’t do: provide or refer for abortions or birth control.
The bill, which passed the majority-Catholic City Council by a vote of 12 to 3 on Nov. 23 as a truth-in-advertising, patient protection measure, levies a $150 fine if the centers haven’t posted disclosures by the end of a 10-day warning period.

Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon, who is pro-choice, has not yet decided whether she’ll sign the bill into law, her spokesperson told Women’s eNews earlier this week. In an unrelated twist, the mayor was found guilty of embezzlement yesterday. If Dixon is removed from office, Baltimore City Council President Stephanie Rawlings-Blake—who happens to be the bill’s primary sponsor—will take her place. Rawlings-Blake’s spokesperson could not be reached for comment about how this change may impact the bill.

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