The state of Texas did not wait for the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health to ban abortion. In May 2021, Texas enacted SB8, a ban on nearly all abortions. The legislation prohibits abortion after six weeks of pregnancy — before many women know they were pregnant — and attaches a bounty to anyone who helped a woman obtain an abortion after that time.
The legislation took effect last September. The Supreme Court let it stay in place, the first clear sign the new majority was prepared to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The elected officials behind Texas' abortion ban subsequently received financial support from major corporations, according to new campaign finance filings with the Texas Ethics Commission. Some donations come from the same corporations that purport to support their employees' reproductive rights by paying for out-of-state travel for abortions.
On June 24, the day of the Dobbs decision, Dallas-based AT&T announced it was "reimbursing travel expenses for medical procedures," including abortion. "The health of our employees and their families is important to our company," the company said.
Comments