Paxton sues Austin over abortion travel fund

The Texas Capitol peeks through the downtown Austin skyline on June 24. (Photo by Olivia Anderson for The Texas Tribune)

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the City of Austin over its reproductive health fund that helps city residents pay to travel out of state to have an abortion. This is the second lawsuit against the city since it appropriated $400,000 to pay for abortion-related expenses earlier this month.

Here’s what you need to know:

The background: Texas banned nearly all abortions in summer 2022. As part of its 2024-2025 budget, the City of Austin appropriated $400,000 to help city residents who have to travel out-of-state pay for airfare, gas, hotel stays, child care, food and companion travel. Other cities have passed similar budget items, including San Antonio.

In late August, former Austin City Council member Don Zimmerman sued over the provision, arguing the city couldn’t use taxpayer dollars to pay for activity that would be illicit within Texas. Paxton’s lawsuit is separate from Zimmerman’s case.

Why Texas sued: Paxton argues in the filing that this budget line item violates the gifts clause of the Texas Constitution, because awarding these funds to individuals does not serve a “legitimate public purpose.”

“No city in Texas has the authority to spend taxpayer money in this manner,” Paxton said in a statement. “In this case, the City of Austin is illegally seeking to use public funding to support travel expenses for out-of-state abortions. The Texas Constitution prohibits governmental entities from doing so.”

What the City of Austin says: A spokesperson for the City of Austin said in a statement that the city has “successfully litigated this issue in the past and, similar to another lawsuit that raises this issue, will respond to the recent allegations through the appropriate court channels.” The City Council proceeded with passing a budget containing this provision after Zimmerman’s lawsuit was filed.

At the time, city council member Vanessa Fuentes told KUT that the fund is a “vital resource.”

“In 2019, Austin made history as the second city in the country, and the first in the south, to fund support for communities seeking abortion care,” she said. “As Texans face one of the harshest abortion bans in the nation, I’m proud to see our city reaffirming its commitment to essential reproductive health care.”

Broader impact: Since Texas banned nearly all abortions after the overturn of Roe v. Wade, thousands of Texans have traveled out of state to terminate their pregnancies. Anti-abortion groups have increasingly targeted groups that help them pay for travel and procedures.

Much of the attention has focused on abortion funds, nonprofit organizations that help pay for travel and procedures at clinics in surrounding states. Paxton has alleged in legal filings that these groups are operating in violation of state law, but a federal judge ruled last year that they are likely safe from prosecution.

Even with that protection, these groups are struggling with far more demand than they can keep up with. City funds, like the one created by Austin, would help alleviate some of the burden on these groups as they try to help more people travel out of state.