Kansas Governor Parkinson Criticized for Cutting Funding for Abortion Alternatives
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
August 10, 2009
Topeka, KS (LifeNews.com) — Kansas Gov. Mark Parkinson is coming under fire for cutting state funding for abortion alternatives, after he already approved funding for the Planned Parenthood abortion business. Parkinson blames the budget cuts on the state health department, which he asked to come up with ways to save money.
To meet the budget requirements, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment eliminated funding for the Sen. Stan Clark Pregnancy Maintenance Initiative.
The legislature established the fund in 2005 to honor Clark, a pro-life advocate who was killed in an automobile accident.
According to the Wichita Eagle newspaper, lawmakers approved $295,000 in 2009 and $345,000 for 2010 to go to groups that help pregnant women.
Parkinson can cut the state budget when the legislature is out on recess and his office told the newspaper that the health department is to blame for what appeared on the chopping block.
"In most cases, the governor did not identify specific programs or initiatives that he recommended for reductions," the statement said. "The governor trusts cabinet officials to make their reductions based on the priorities for their agencies."
The Kansas Catholic Conference responded to the cut in the abortion alternatives funding with comments from Kansas City Archbishop Joseph Naumann and three bishops in the state.
"Complete elimination of this funding suggests that Kansas does not view the plight of pregnant women in need as a matter of even low priority, when in fact we know this not to be true," their statement said. "Ending a program such as this also runs counter to the rhetoric of those on both sides of the abortion question who suggest that reducing incidence of abortion should be a focal point of government efforts."
The cuts are offensive to pro-life advocates given how Parkinson restored hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxpayer funding for the Planned Parenthood abortion business in May.
That came after the state legislature had agreed to delete it from the state budget to save money.
Parkinson struck that language in order to give $250,000 back to Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri despite the current adverse economic conditions.
"Regardless of one’s views on whether abortion should be allowed in the country, hopefully we can all agree that we should make every effort to prevent unplanned pregnancies," Parkinson said in his veto message.
Although Planned Parenthood is the nation’s largest abortion business and does late-term abortions at its Overland Park facility, it claims none of the taxpayer funds will be used to pay for abortions.
Mary Kay Culp, executive director of Kansans for Life, was sorely disappointed by the decision. She said Parkinson’s move made it so he has a succinct by clear pro-abortion record now.
"We were hoping he would be better than Kathleen Sebelius, but evidently he’s not," she said. "It means the state will continue to give tax dollars to an organization to prevent pregnancy that stands to make money when they don’t do that job."
ACTION: Show your disappointment by contacting Governor Parkinson at: https://www.governor.ks.gov/contact.htm
Related web sites:
Kansans for Life – https://www.kfl.org
Kansas governor – https://ksgovernor.org
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