The Kansas Senate on Tuesday expanded a bill holding fathers responsible for picking up the cost of child support from the moment of conception.
The Senate advanced to final action a bill that was amended to include a $2,320 tax deduction for a fetus assigned a taxpayer identification number by the state Department Revenue.
The bill was amended by Democratic state Sen. Patrick Schmidt of Topeka, who is supportive of abortion rights.
The legislation, already approved by the House, will be up for final action Wednesday.
The amendment introduced by Schmidt drew almost immediate support from Republicans who oppose abortion, although there were some skeptics.
“I’m somewhat inclined to vote for something like this,” said Republican state Sen. Joe Claeys of Maize. “My fear is that this hasn’t been vetted through a committee.”
Claeys and others asked Schmidt how his amendment would work.
“I kind of like the bill, but I am not certain how in the world we’re going to get a taxpayer identification number issued for unborn children,” said Republican state Sen. Virgil Peck of Havana.
“I guess once they’re born they would receive a Social Security number from the Social Security Administration. I see a lot of moving parts in this legislation that I’m concerned with,” Peck said.
Peck pressed Schmidt about how much revenue the amendment would cost the state by allowing “unborn children to be counted for tax purposes.”
“I kind of like the amendment,” Peck said, “but I fear the fiscal note is going to be really extreme.”
Schmidt responded, “I would remind the chamber that the overwhelming majority – I think 37 members of this body – just voted to get rid of property taxes on private jets.
“If we can afford to get rid of property taxes on private jets, we can certainly afford to support families that are trying to start a family in Kansas.
“I believe that we should be doing anything and everything we can to support people trying to conceive and start a family in Kansas,” he said.
Schmidt said his amendment would apply throughout the duration of a pregnancy but would cease if the pregnancy ended.
Senate President Ty Masterson came out in support for the amendment, saying he liked the concept and calling it a step forward.
“This really does give value to that unborn child,” Masterson said.
“I like the concept of this.”
He said the amendment would force the bill into a conference committee, although it could be removed if it presented an obstacle.
Peck asked whether the amendment was germane to the underlying bill. After a short meeting, leading senators concluded it was relevant to the bill.
“I am delighted to hear that,” Peck said of the ruling.
“I’m delighted with this amendment and I am more than willing – as everyone on the Ways and Means Committee knows – to make certain that we adjust our budget accordingly.
“I would urge everyone in this chamber to support this legislation because it’s the right thing to do,” Peck said.
The overall legislation would require direct medical and pregnancy-related expenses to be added to state guidelines that courts must consider in awarding child support.
The amount of child support would be calculated from the date of conception plus interest.
Currently under Kansas law, the parental relationships are not established until there is a live birth.
Supporters said the bill only requires judges to consider child support payments for pregnancy-related expenses.
They said the bill doesn’t change any of the legal proceedings related to child support, only that it be considered by the court in those cases.
They said the bill didn’t change how paternity would be determined, saying there are already procedures for doing that.
“It is a bill that would help mothers in Kansas and would help mothers for their pregnancy-related expenses, which can sometimes be a lot,” said Republican state Sen. Kellie Warren, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Opponents of the bill have cast it as an attempt to further an “anti-abortion agenda.”
They say it’s another way to establish “fetal personhood” in state law and make it easier to enact laws that would limit access to abortion.
The Senate’s top Democrat, Dinah Sykes, said Tuesday that the amendment bolsters that claim.
“It is very clear that the bill is not about child support, but about fetal personhood,” Sykes said after Tuesday’s session of the Senate.
Supporters of the bill said there are already parts of Kansas law that recognize a fetus as life in cases of criminal proceedings, pointing to Alexa’s law in which someone can be convicted for any number of crimes against a fetus.
After the Senate convened Tuesday, Schmidt said he still had reservations about the overall bill.
“While I’m concerned the underlying bill is being used as a Trojan horse to attack women’s rights, I think we have to be consistent,” Schmidt said in a text message.
“If a fetus is worthy of child support then certainly the state should deem it worthy of a tax exemption,” he said.
“I think we need to be mindful of the many struggling, single mothers who, through no fault of their own need support during pregnancy,” he said.
“If they should get child support during the pregnancy they should also get the tax deduction,” he said.
“It’s time we as a state pass truly family friendly policies that apply evenly to its citizens and the state as well.”
