To allow or criminalize: The range of S.C. abortion debate

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - Competing bills related to abortion are being pre-filed for the session and a few are already drawing attention for their variety of intentions.

A handful of upstate representatives pre-filed HB 3537 which seeks to criminalize abortion by defining a fetus or unborn child as a person at any stage of development. This definition would allow that person the protections of the constitution, including prosecuting homicide and assault against that person. The bill is one of the more strict attempts at abortion law in South Carolina.

HB 3537: https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess126_2025-2026/bills/3537.htm

It’s the second session where Rep. Rob Harris has made it a priority to pre-file the bill. He says it puts state law in line with the 14th Amendment that “no state shall... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

“The 14th Amendment concept is critical. We have to decide as a state, are we going to stop abortion at conception? If we all say it’s life, and a lot of these bills on one hand, they say, life begins a conception, but it’s okay to take life in these circumstances. I don’t know of any other situation in life where they say, well, yeah, I can see why you took that person’s life. It’s not it’s just not compatible, it’s not fair, it’s not just,” Harris says.

As of the start of 2025, South Carolina law does not place laws on abortion in the first six weeks of pregnancy. The law also provides exceptions in certain cases of saving the pregnant person’s life, preventing serious risk to the pregnant person’s physical health, if the fetus is not expected to survive the pregnancy, or if the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest.

“Up to about six weeks in this state, there is no restriction on abortion, really, and for mothers who want to do the abortion themselves, medically or self-managed, whatever you want to call it, it’s still legal throughout their pregnancy, so it’s important to stop that,” Harris says.

Harris, an operating room assistant and father of ten, wants to make it clear, the bill doesn’t mean criminalizing natural or ‘spontaneous’ abortion often referred to as a miscarriage. He shares that he and his wife have experienced that and know the difficulty first-hand. He says the bill does not plan to go after mothers or doctors if any sort of complication causes loss of pregnancy. He also clarifies it does not require any specific sort of sentencing.

“A lot of the common, you know, rhetoric I get, the phone calls, the emails, is that I’m trying to give women the death penalty, which is the farthest thing from the truth,” Harris says. “Many people who accuse me of things online and in emails, I seriously doubt - I question whether they’ve actually read the bill, because it doesn’t create any new laws.”

The Senate Democratic minority leader feels differently about the topic, not wanting to see limits placed on what he calls a medical procedure. Sen. Brad Hutto, pre-filed SB 27 which seeks to allow abortion prior to the viability of the fetus. It also would provide for exceptions such as rape or incest where a woman could seek an abortion as needed.

SB 27: https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess126_2025-2026/bills/27.htm

“I have always believed that women are best suited to make decisions for themselves in consultation with their families, their doctors, their religious advisors, whoever they think is appropriate, that’s who should be making decisions, not a bunch of old men sitting up in Columbia deciding what a young woman in Jasper or Charleston or Beaufort should do,” Hutto says.

Senate Bill 27 also focuses on ensuring quality pre-and post-natal care as well as providing age-appropriate and medically accurate education. Hutto says the state curriculum for sex education hasn’t been updated in decades, and it’s overdue.

“I think it’s important that all our young people receive age-appropriate information as they come through the school system, whether it’s in their science class, biology class, or whatever class they’re in. Children need to know about their bodies, need to know about the reproductive system, and they don’t need to be getting information off the internet or from each other,” Hutto says.

Hutto has pre-filed a few bills he says are all part of family focus, such as allowing transfer of extra fertilized IVF eggs to families wanting a child but struggling, and extending parental leave. Hutto says those are the way to care for families in South Carolina. Hutto maintains his stance on abortion law, as he has since entering politics, saying he doesn’t see a need for restrictive laws, based on what he’s seen in polling.

“Quite frankly, right now, what we’ve done is criminalize the practice of medicine to the point that we’re going to cause some potential doctors to not to want to even train or practice in South Carolina, and that’s very unfortunate for women who need care. Again, I don’t think that it’s the business of the state to get involved in those intimate decisions. I believe it should be left up to women and doctors,” Hutto says.

Harris says he believes getting his bill on the books is a priority and in fact, other abortion laws that simply ban the act based on heartbeat don’t go far enough. He believes defining life as starting at conception with this bill, should allow for legal protections for the fetus.

“So those bills, in my opinion, will never meet the mark of legal protection. They’ll never comprehend the 14th Amendment idea of providing equal protection to everybody and equal due process to anybody who’s accused. Again, I want to emphasize that,” Harris says.

The South Carolina legislature has a super majority of Republican control in the House and Senate for the 2025-2026 session. Hutto says that could mean certain bills are prioritized and looked at first, but time will tell.

“I worry that they’re going to try and push the agenda much further from where I would have it be and where, where quite frankly, where most South Carolinians would have it be. On any poll you look at the vast majority of South Carolinians believe this is a decision best left to a woman and to her doctors, not to a bunch of old guys sitting in a in a chamber debating something that they know little about. We’ll have that discussion at some, whether it’s on the that I would like to have it, or the they would like to have it. We’ll probably get to that this year,” Hutto says.

Hundreds of bills have been pre-filed in the House and Senate. Many are similar and may end up merging with others. Some never make it out of committee because of the large number of filings to consider. Lawmakers will convene on Jan. 14 to begin the 126th session.

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