,,ii #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #ahb ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,january #ag1 #bjai,mr4 ,kennedy 7for himself1 ,mrs4 ,blackburn1 and ,mr4 ,cramer7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to prohibit discrimination against the unborn on the basis of sex1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,prenatal ,nondiscrimination ,act or ,,prenda4 #b4 ,findings and constitutional authority 7a7 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,women are a vital part of ,american society and culture and possess the same fundamental human rights and civil rights as men4 7#b7 ,united ,states law prohibits the dissimilar treatment of males and females who are similarly situated and prohibits sex discrimination in various contexts1 including the provision of employment1 education1 housing1 health insurance coverage1 and athletics4 7#c7 ,a sex-selection abortion is an abortion undertaken for purposes of eliminating an unborn child of an undesired sex4 ,sex-selection abortion is described by scholars and civil rights advocates as an act of sex-based or gender-based violence1 predicated on sex discrimination4 ,by definition1 sex-selection abortions do not implicate the health of the mother of the unborn1 but instead are elective procedures motivated by sex or gender bias4 7#d7 ,the targeted victims of sex-selection abortions performed in the ,united ,states and worldwide are overwhelmingly female4 7#e7 ,sex-selection abortions are not expressly prohibited by ,united ,states law1 and only #g ,states ban abortions for reason of sex selection at some point in pregnancy4 ,sex is an immutable characteristic ascertainable at the earliest stages of human development through existing medical technology and procedures commonly in use1 including maternal-fetal bloodstream ,,dna sampling1 amniocentesis1 chorionic villus sampling or ,,cvs1 and obstetric ultrasound4 7#f7 ,sex-selection abortions have the effect of diminishing the representation of women in the ,american population1 and therefore1 the ,american electorate4 7#g7 ,sex-selection abortion reinforces sex discrimination and has no place in a civilized society4 7#h7 ,the history of the ,united ,states includes many examples of sex discrimination4 ,the people of the ,united ,states ultimately responded in the strongest possible legal terms by enacting a constitutional amendment correcting an element of this discrimination4 ,women1 once subjected to sex discrimination that denied them the right to vote1 now have suffrage guaranteed by the #aith ,amendment4 ,the elimination of discriminatory practices has been and is among the highest priorities and greatest achievements of ,american history4 7#i7 ,implicitly approving the discriminatory practices of sex-selection abortion by choosing not to prohibit them will reinforce sex discrimination1 and coarsen society to the value of females4 ,thus1 ,congress has a compelling interest in acting--indeed it must act--to prohibit sex-selection abortion4 7b7 ,constitutional authority ,in accordance with the above findings1 ,congress enacts the following pursuant to ,congress' power under-- 7#a7 the ,commerce ,clause2 7#b7 section #e of the #adth ,amendment to the ,constitution of the ,united ,states1 including the power to enforce the prohibition on government action denying equal protection of the laws2 and 7#c7 section #h of article ,i of the ,constitution of the ,united ,states to make all laws necessary and proper for the carrying into execution of powers vested by the ,constitution in the ,government of the ,united ,states4 #c4 ,discrimination against the unborn on the basis of sex 7a7 ,in general ,chapter #ac of title #ah1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #bej4 ,discrimination against the unborn on the basis of sex 7a7 ,in general ,whoever knowingly-- 7#a7 performs an abortion knowing that such abortion is sought based on the sex or gender of the child2 7#b7 uses force or the threat of force to intentionally injure or intimidate any person for the purpose of coercing a sex-selection abortion2 7#c7 solicits or accepts funds for the performance of a sex-selection abortion2 or 7#d7 transports a woman into the ,united ,states or across a ,state line for the purpose of obtaining a sex-selection abortion1 or attempts to do so1 shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than #e years1 or both4 7b7 ,civil remedies 7#a7 ,civil action by woman on whom abortion is performed ,a woman upon whom an abortion has been performed or attempted in violation of subsection 7a77#b7 may in a civil action against any person who engaged in a violation of subsection 7a7 obtain appropriate relief4 7#b7 ,civil action by relatives ,the father of an unborn child who is the subject of an abortion performed or attempted in violation of subsection 7a71 or a maternal grandparent of the unborn child if the pregnant woman is an unemancipated minor1 may in a civil action against any person who engaged in the violation1 obtain appropriate relief1 unless the pregnancy or abortion resulted from the plaintiff's criminal conduct or the plaintiff consented to the abortion4 7#c7 ,appropriate relief ,appropriate relief in a civil action under this subsection includes-- 7,a7 objectively verifiable money damages for all injuries1 psychological and physical1 including loss of companionship and support1 occasioned by the violation of this section2 and 7,b7 punitive damages4 7#d7 ,injunctive relief 7,a7 ,in general ,a qualified plaintiff may in a civil action obtain injunctive relief to prevent an abortion provider from performing or attempting further abortions in violation of this section4 7,b7 ,definition ,in this paragraph the term qualified plaintiff means-- 7i7 a woman upon whom an abortion is performed or attempted in violation of this section2 7ii7 a maternal grandparent of the unborn child if the woman upon whom an abortion is performed or attempted in violation of this section is an unemancipated minor2 7iii7 the father of an unborn child who is the subject of an abortion performed or attempted in violation of subsection 7a72 or 7iv7 the ,attorney ,general4 7#e7 ,attorneys fees for plaintiff ,the court shall award a reasonable attorney's fee as part of the costs to a prevailing plaintiff in a civil action under this subsection4 7c7 ,bar to prosecution ,a woman upon whom a sex-selection abortion is performed may not be prosecuted or held civilly liable for any violation of this section1 or for a conspiracy to violate this section4 7d7 ,loss of ,federal funding ,a violation of subsection 7a7 shall be deemed for the purposes of title ,,vi of the ,civil ,rights ,act of #aifd to be discrimination prohibited by section #fja of that ,act4 7e7 ,reporting requirement ,a physician1 physician's assistant1 nurse1 counselor1 or other medical or mental health professional shall report known or suspected violations of any of this section to appropriate law enforcement authorities4 ,whoever violates this requirement shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than #a year1 or both4 7f7 ,expedited consideration ,it shall be the duty of the ,united ,states district courts1 ,united ,states courts of appeal1 and the ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states to advance on the docket and to expedite to the greatest possible extent the disposition of any matter brought under this section4 7g7 ,protection of privacy in court proceedings 7#a7 ,in general ,except to the extent the ,constitution or other similarly compelling reason requires1 in every civil or criminal action under this section1 the court shall make such orders as are necessary to protect the anonymity of any woman upon whom an abortion has been performed or attempted if she does not give her written consent to such disclosure4 ,such orders may be made upon motion1 but shall be made sua sponte if not otherwise sought by a party4 7#b7 ,orders to parties1 witnesses1 and counsel ,the court shall issue appropriate orders to the parties1 witnesses1 and counsel and shall direct the sealing of the record and exclusion of individuals from courtrooms or hearing rooms to the extent necessary to safeguard the identity of the woman described in paragraph 7#a7 from public disclosure4 7#c7 ,pseudonym required ,in the absence of written consent of the woman upon whom an abortion has been performed or attempted1 any party1 other than a public official1 who brings an action under this section shall do so under a pseudonym4 7#d7 ,limitation ,this subsection shall not be construed to conceal the identity of the plaintiff or of witnesses from the defendant or from attorneys for the defendant4 7h7 ,definitions ,in this section-- 7#a7 the term abortion means the act of using or prescribing any instrument1 medicine1 drug1 or any other substance1 device1 or means with the intent to-- 7,a7 kill the unborn child of a woman known to be pregnant2 or 7,b7 terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant1 with an intention other than-- 7i7 after viability to produce a live birth and preserve the life and health of the child born alive2 or 7ii7 to remove a dead unborn child2 and 7#b7 the term sex-selection abortion means an abortion undertaken for purposes of eliminating an unborn child of an undesired sex4 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of sections at the beginning of chapter #ac of title #ah1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding after the item relating to section #bdi the following new item3 #bej4 ,discrimination against the unborn on the basis of sex4 4 #d4 ,severability ,if any portion of this ,act1 or the amendments made by this ,act1 or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid1 such invalidity shall not affect the portions or applications of this ,act which can be given effect without the invalid portion or application4