Texas Democratic lawmakers filed a series of pro-abortion bills Monday that would repeal or narrow state restrictions, including a broad proposal that would also eliminate Texas’ 2023 prohibitions on certain sex-rejecting medical procedures for minors.
State Rep. Donna Howard (D-District 48) filed House Bill 126 on November 9 as lawmakers began submitting proposals for the Legislature’s 2027 session. The measure would repeal Texas’ abortion trigger ban, the Heartbeat Act and numerous related restrictions.
Its repeal list also includes Subchapter X of Chapter 161 of the Health and Safety Code, the central provision of Senate Bill 14, which restricts certain sex-rejecting medical interventions for minors.
What HB 126 Would Change
Howard’s nine-page proposal would remove the trigger ban in Chapter 170A, repeal multiple restrictions in Chapter 171 and eliminate Chapter 245, which governs abortion-facility licensing. It would also repeal Chapter 33 of the Family Code, removing the existing statutory framework for parental consent and judicial bypass when minors seek abortions.
The measure would replace the current statutory definition of abortion and remove other rules involving physicians, insurance and public funding. These are proposed changes, not changes to current law.
Four Other Bills Offer Different Approaches
House Bill 948, which state rep.-elect Samantha Lopez-Resendez (D-District 50) filed, proposes repealing the trigger ban, Heartbeat Act and pre-Roe statutes. Its introduced text unusually lists September 1, 2025, as the effective date, despite its filing for the 2027 session.
State Rep. Rhetta Bowers (D-District 113) filed House Bill 987 to repeal the trigger ban and pre-Roe statutes while leaving the Heartbeat Act in place. The proposal also changes abortion-complication reporting and requires physician examinations, documentation of gestational age and pregnancy location, and follow-up scheduling when physicians provide abortion-inducing drugs.
State Sen. Carol Alvarado (D-Houston) proposed Senate Bill 231, which would create exceptions for pregnancies resulting from sexual assault or incest. The bill expressly states that patients would not need to file police reports, submit forensic evidence or secure prosecutions. It would also extend corresponding exceptions to the Heartbeat Act and repeal the pre-Roe statutes.
State Sen. Molly Cook (D-Houston) introduced Senate Bill 243, which would permit an exception when a treating physician and another obstetrics-and-gynecology specialist determine that a lethal fetal anomaly or diagnosis makes an abortion necessary. For a fetus older than 24 weeks, a multidisciplinary ethics committee would review that determination. The bill would also establish supportive palliative-care standards for infants with lethal conditions and repeal the pre-Roe statutes.
Election Gains Do Not Guarantee Repeal
The proposals follow Democratic gains in the November 3 election, including Gina Hinojosa’s victory in the governor’s race and a new Democratic majority in the Texas House. Republicans retained the Texas Senate, where lawmakers could block repeal measures.
The introduced bills vary substantially in scope, and lawmakers have not approved any of them.
As The Dallas Express previously covered, state data showed medically necessary abortions under Texas’ statutory exceptions after the 2022 Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.
The 90th Legislature is scheduled to convene January 12, 2027.
