BOISE, Idaho — Six college professors - and their faculty unions - filed a lawsuit with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) against the state regarding the 'chilling effect' created by the No Public Funds for Abortion Act (NPFAA).
The Idaho State Legislature passed the law by a near party-line vote to prohibit government and public institutions from any business transaction with abortion providers. Further, the law states schools cannot "promote abortion." The language is vague and stops regular classroom discussion and curriculum through fear of prosecution, according to the lawsuit.
"The purpose of the legislation was to protect taxpayer dollars for being used to promote or provide abortions," Idaho Family Policy Center President Blaine Conzatti said. "Academic discussion taking place in the classroom on topics related to abortion, and various perspectives on abortion is allowed under the law."
The lawsuit details six professors and their individual experience navigating uncertainty under NPFAA. Those struggles include ethics classes only looking at one side of the abortion argument, and literature classes no longer reading an essay - written from the perspective of a nurse about the ethical dilemma's involved with being an abortion provider.
Conzatti helped write NPFAA act alongside Rep. Bruce Skaug (R-Nampa). Skaug proposed an amendment in the 2023 legislative session to explicitly exempt classroom discussions from NPFAA prosecution.
The bill died in a committee drawer; Conzatti considers the amendment redundant, contesting the law would not prosecute neutral academic work.
"I don't think that amendment would have substantially changed the fact of the law at all," Conzatti said.
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