Thank you for contacting my office in Washington D.C. Discussing important
issues with my constituents is very important to me.
Through the Family Planning Program (Title X of the PublicHealth Service
Act), the federal government provides grants for voluntaryfamily planning
services. This program was enacted in 1970 and is the only domestic federal
program devotedsolely to family planning issues and related preventive health
services. It receives its funding throughappropriations for the Health Resources
and Services Administrations (HRSA) under the Department of Healthand Human
Services (DHHS), Labor, and Education.
On March 11, 2009, the 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act wassigned into law and
provided $307.5 million for Title X in FY 2009. This is a 2.5% increase over
theFY 2008 funding level of $300 million. These funds are prohibited from being
spent on programs whereabortion is a method of family planning. The family
planning projects that received these funds are closelymonitored to ensure that
federal funds are used appropriately. A grantee's abortion activities must
be"separate and distinct" from the Title X project activities.
In the 112th Congress, Rep. Mike Pence has introducedH.R. 217, which would
prohibit women's health centers from receiving Title X funds if they also
provideabortion care with private funds. As the law already requires
that federal funds not be usedfor abortions, I am afraid that this legislation
would have the unintended consequence of denying millionsof women from receiving
their primary care health under the Title X program.
Once again, thank you for expressing your opinion on thisimportant matter.
Please feel free to contact any of my offices if we can assist you in any way. I
amvery interested in your opinions and your concerns. To find more information
regarding my services orcurrent legislation, please visit my website at: www.lujan.house.gov.
Sincerely,
Rep. Ben Ray Luján
United States House of
Representatives
NM-03