Texas Lawmakers Approve $200 Million to Help Moms and Babies

Texas lawmakers increased funding this year for pregnancy centers, adoption agencies, and maternity homes to help families choose Life. The state budget includes $200 million for Pro-Life nonprofits, and officials also passed new legislation that will limit the ways bureaucrats sabotage the program. Although this is a big win, Pro-Life leaders still have a lot of work to do to crack down on mail-order abortion pills.

Pro-Life pregnancy centers, adoption agencies, and maternity homes can receive state funds through the Thriving Texas Families program when they help pregnant women and families (even until the baby is three years old). These nonprofits give hope to mothers and fathers who might otherwise seek illegal or out-of-state abortions. Pregnancy centers offer free services like counseling, child care, diapers and formula, job skills training, adoption, housing placement assistance, parenting classes, and more.

(Texas Right to Life does not receive state funding, but we know how much it makes a difference for local Pro-Life ministries. That’s why we fight in the Capitol to protect this critical program.)

More and more families are turning to Pro-Life nonprofits for support. Since 2022 when Roe v. Wade was overturned, abortions in Texas have declined while birth rates have risen. The demand for life-affirming providers in the Thriving Texas Families program is at an all-time high. Because of this trend, Texas Right to Life urged lawmakers to fully fund the program with $210 million in the state budget.

First, officials planned to decrease Pro-Life funding from previous years… only $140 million compared to 2023’s $165 million.

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Then, the Senate bumped the amount up to $180 million, still short of the program’s needs.

Next, Representatives Tom Oliverson (R–Cypress), Caroline Harris-Davila (R–Round Rock), and Andy Hopper (R–Decatur) added amendments in the House to meet the goal of $210 million.

Since the House and Senate had different amounts in their bills, a small group of lawmakers worked out a compromise. They chose the Senate’s lower amount in the state budget (Senate Bill 1), but they added more money in a separate policy (House Bill 500), which is used to cover extra needs before the main budget kicks in. This additional legislation provides another $20 million for Pro-Life ministries.

All together, the program will get $200 million—just $10 million short of the full amount.

State officials also improved the program by addressing a few issues with the bureaucrats in charge of giving out the Pro-Life funding (the Texas Health and Human Services Commission).

For example, the agency recently gave money—meant for Pro-Life nonprofits—to a hospital that refers women to Planned Parenthood.

To fix this, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1388 by Senator Lois Kolkhorst (R–Brenham), sponsored by Representative James Frank (R–Wichita Falls). The policy will make clear that only life-affirming providers can be part of the program—organizations that offer support for pregnancy, adoption, and parenting.

Unfortunately, bureaucrats can still thwart Pro-Life funding in other ways. Earlier this year, the agency changed the rules so that it’s more difficult for small pregnancy centers to participate. They banned the way that most Pro-Life nonprofits report their services and get reimbursed. Lawmakers didn’t step in to stop it.

What’s more: Officials ignored one of the deadliest problems in Texas: mail-order abortion pills. House leaders killed a bill (Senate Bill 2880) that would have cracked down on the 19,000 abortion pills smuggled into Texas each year—leaving a gaping hole in Texas’s Pro-Life protections.

While the increased funding is a great step forward, it’s only one piece of the puzzle. With your help, we will keep working to protect the Pro-Life mission of the Thriving Texas Families program. At the same time, lawmakers must take action to stop abortion pills from coming into our state.