President Donald Trump has signed an executive order reaffirming the Hyde Amendment, a longstanding federal ban on taxpayer funding for elective abortions.
Trump signed the order, titled “Enforcing the Hyde Amendment,” on Jan. 24, stating that the amendment’s ban on using taxpayer dollars to fund or promote elective abortions represents a “longstanding consensus” among Americans.
The order not only reinforces existing law but also rolls back policies implemented under the Biden administration that allegedly circumvented the Hyde Amendment’s provisions.
“For nearly five decades, the Congress has annually enacted the Hyde Amendment and similar laws that prevent Federal funding of elective abortion, reflecting a longstanding consensus that American taxpayers should not be forced to pay for that practice,” Trump’s executive order reads. “However, the previous administration disregarded this established, commonsense policy by embedding forced taxpayer funding of elective abortions in a wide variety of Federal programs.”
Since the amendment is a “rider” to the annual appropriations bill and not a permanent law, it must be renewed by Congress each year. This gives lawmakers the opportunity to modify its language or do away with it. Republicans have unsuccessfully tried to make the ban permanent, while Democrats have tried to do away with the prohibition entirely.
Trump’s order also tasks the Office of Management and Budget with issuing detailed guidance to federal agencies to ensure compliance with the Hyde Amendment. This guidance is intended to address the implementation of the order’s provisions and the rollback of previous policies adopted during Biden’s tenure.
The executive order also clarifies that it does not create new laws but merely directs federal agencies to adhere strictly to the parameters of existing laws.
