The San Antonio Family Association, Texas Right to Life and other plaintiffs filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the City of San Antonio over a new women’s health fund members of the City Council added to the 2024 city budget.
The city’s $3.7 billion budget approved last month included a $500,000 fund to assist with reproductive health access, a last-minute and controversial addition to the spending plan. Left unresolved was whether that money could go to groups that help people travel out of state to receive abortions.
Abortion rights activists were among those pushing for the fund, which will be managed by the city’s health department, to be included in the city budget.
The lawsuit, which names Mayor Ron Nirenberg and City Manager Erik Walsh as defendants, alleges that the fund’s intended purpose is illegal because it would violate the state’s abortion law, which prohibits individuals or groups from assisting people in getting an abortion.
The suit seeks to proactively stop the city from giving the money to any group that assists with abortion, even if the group provides other services.
“Any grant of taxpayer money to criminal organizations that violate the state’s abortion laws … must be enjoined, regardless of how the recipient organization intends to use the money,” the lawsuit states.
“It is unfortunate taxpayer funds will be spent on defending against this lawsuit based on misinformation and false allegations,” City Attorney Andy Segovia said in a statement. “The facts are that a decision has not been made on how that money will be used. The City Council will have an open work session to discuss the use of the funds that will be managed by the City’s Metro Health Department. The funds will be distributed in accordance with state and federal laws.”
The reproductive health fund was approved by all council members except Councilman Marc Whyte (D10), who abstained from the city budget vote over its inclusion.
At the time of the budget vote, Segovia assured members of the council they weren’t breaking any laws by creating a women’s health fund, which will be managed by the city’s health department. However, he noted they would need to explore the issue in depth at a later date when determining which groups receive the money.
“The organizations that lobbied for this budgetary provision and hope to obtain this taxpayer money include Jane’s Due Process, Avow, the Buckle Bunnies Fund, Sueños Sin Fronteras and the Lilith Fund for Reproductive Equity,” the lawsuit stated. “Many of these organizations facilitate or subsidize out-of-state abortions performed on Texas residents.”
Councilwoman Teri Castillo (D5), who proposed the fund, said during the budget discussions that the money would be “for the purpose of directly funding and supporting community based organizations that provide comprehensive reproductive and sexual health care services, resources and education.”
The other plaintiffs in the suit include the Bexar County Republican Party, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, Unite San Antonio and individual residents.
The San Antonio Family Association (SAFA) previously sued the city in 2019 over Chick-fil-A’s removal from the city’s airport concessionaire contract, alleging the action was taken because of the fast-food company’s charitable support of Christian organizations. The suit went to the Texas Supreme Court, which decided SAFA’s case lacked evidence.
