Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued the city of Austin after it allocated $500,000 dollars to fund out of state travel expenses for abortions, a move Paxton said violated the State’s Constitution.
“I’m suing the City of Austin for illegally appropriating taxpayer funds to pay for out of state abortion travel cost. No city in Texas has the authority to spend taxpayer money in this manner. 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,” Paxton said on social media on September 27.
Attorney General Ken Paxton Sues City of Austin for Illegally Appropriating Taxpayer Funds to Pay for Out of State Abortion Travel: https://t.co/MUJAcCyqX0
— Texas Attorney General (@TXAG) September 27, 2024
A former Austin City Council member had sued the city for going forward with the funding program.
“Former City Council Member Don Zimmerman filed the lawsuit August 20, arguing that it is against state law to ‘spend taxpayer dollars on abortion-assistance activities.’ The suit also contends that the city violated the state’s gift clause, which prohibits cities from giving money to private individuals unless there is a public purpose,” Live Action reported on August 26.