Senate Bill 1909, as amended, would prevent pregnancy help centers in Illinois from continuing to help low-income, vulnerable, and marginalized women across Illinois. The bill chills First Amendment free speech rights by subjecting pregnancy help centers to fines of up to $50,000 if they engage in “unfair methods of competition or unfair or deceptive acts or practices,” use “false pretense,” or omit “material facts” as they relate to abortion.  However, all these terms are not defined in the bill and could be broadly interpreted by the Attorney General and lead to investigation of pregnancy centers. For more information, our fact sheet on SB 1909 can be found HERE.

The Senate Executive Committee will begin to hear testimony on Amendment 1 to the bill later today (Wednesday, March 29) and we encourage you to submit a witness slip in opposition to SB 1909 as soon as possible.  To submit a witness slip:

1. Go to this LINK.
2. Under Section I – fill out your contact information.
3. Under Section II – write Self or if you are representing an organization, you can write your organization’s name there.
4. Under Section III – choose Opponent as the position.
5. Under Section IV – choose Record of Appearance Only.
6. Remember to check the box next to “I Agree to the ILGA Terms of Agreement” before clicking Submit.

Thank you for your consideration and for registering your opposition to Senate Bill 1909.