Catholic groups fight Florida abortion measure
TALLAHASSEE - The Knights of Columbus Catholic fraternal organization and the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops have contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars this month to try to help defeat a ballot proposal that would enshrine abortion rights in the state Constitution.
The Knights of Columbus has sent $500,000 to Florida Voters Against Extremism, a political committee fighting what appears as Amendment 4 on the Nov. 5 ballot, according to a state campaign-finance database. Meanwhile, the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops has contributed $100,000 this month to the committee and had earlier contributed nearly $172,000 in cash and in-kind services. Also this month, the Archdiocese of Miami made a $62,000 in-kind contribution after earlier contributing about $322,000 in cash, according to the database.
The proposed constitutional amendment says, in part, that no "law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's healthcare provider."
The Floridians Protecting Freedom political committee started a drive to pass the amendment last year after Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican-controlled Legislature approved a bill that largely prevents abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. The Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops has long lobbied in Tallahassee in favor of tighter abortion restrictions.