SEATTLE — Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell signed four bills Monday in support of reproductive rights.
One of those bills makes it a misdemeanor crime to encroach on people seeking abortions. Another bill makes Seattle a sanctuary city where out-of-state warrants related to abortion will not be pursued by police.
While abortion remains legal in Washington, bans are beginning to go into effect in other states.
“Idaho is set to ban nearly all abortions in nearly ten days from now,” said Amanda Saxton, a volunteer board director with the Northwest Abortion Access Fund.
"We provide money directly to clinics,” said Saxton, adding that they also help people crossing state lines for care.
"The Seattle City Council has made it very clear from the start that they want to make Seattle and Washington a destination for those seeking abortion,” said Brad Payne, the policy and government relations director for Family Policy Institute of Washington.
The new legislation is something Payne is against.
"My goal and the goal of our organization is that someday abortion will be unthinkable,” said Payne.
On Monday at City Hall, however, the mayor indeed added more abortion protections in Seattle.
"Today I am very excited to sign four bills related to reproductive health and reproductive justice," Harrell said.
Mayor Harrell called the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade reversal a "decades-long leap backwards."
City Councilmember Tammy Morales believes it will harm women.
“The Supreme Court disregarded 50 years of precedence,” said Morales, who added that the decision takes away a person’s right to choose by forcing people to give birth against their will.
"Experts expect Washington state to see a fourfold increase in people seeking abortions here,” said Seattle City Councilmember Lisa Herbold.
"These people coming from other states, we see as an opportunity to be able to speak with those if we have that chance, to be able to get them to crisis pregnancy centers and others to talk about options that they have instead of aborting the child,” said Payne.
One of the bills signed on Monday appropriates $250,000 of city funds to the Northwest Abortion Access Fund.
"The Northwest Abortion Access Fund is going to remain here. We are going to be here to help people access abortions wherever they are from, whatever their finances. That is our main goal,” said Saxton.
The legislation goes into effect 30 days after it is signed.