119-s2671

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2671 Introduced in Senate

    (IS) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 S. 2671

 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to require a section on 
 reproductive rights in the Annual Country Reports on Human Rights 
 Practices, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

 August 1, 2025

 Mr. Schatz (for himself, Ms. Duckworth, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Blumenthal, 
Ms. Klobuchar, Mrs. Gillibrand, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Merkley, Ms. Rosen, Mr. 
Wyden, Mr. Padilla, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Markey, Mr. Welch, Mr. Coons, Mr. 
 Booker, and Mr. Van Hollen) introduced the following bill; which was 
 read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to require a section on 
 reproductive rights in the Annual Country Reports on Human Rights 
 Practices, and for other purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Reproductive Rights Are Human Rights 
Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    (a) 

=== Findings ===
-Congress finds the following:

    (1) The United States has joined the international 
 community in identifying reproductive rights as human rights, 
 including in connection with--
        (A) the International Convention on the Elimination 
 of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, done at New York 
 December 21, 1965;
        (B) the ratification of the International Covenant 
 on Civil and Political Rights, done at New York 
 December 19, 1966 (referred to in this Act as 
 ``ICCPR'');
            (C) the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, 
 Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, done at 
 New York December 10, 1984;
            (D) the 1994 International Conference on Population 
 and Development; and
        (E) the 1995 Beijing World Conference on Women.

    (2) General comment No. 36

    (2018) on article 6 of the 
 ICCPR, which was adopted by the Human Rights Committee on 
 October 30, 2018, asserts that States parties--
        (A) should ensure access for all persons ``to 
 quality and evidence-based information and education 
 about sexual and reproductive health and to a wide 
 range of affordable contraceptive methods'';
        (B) ``must provide safe, legal, and effective 
 access to abortion where the life and health of the 
 pregnant woman or girl is at risk, or where carrying a 
 pregnancy to term would cause the pregnant woman or 
 girl substantial pain or suffering, most notably where 
 pregnancy is the result of rape or incest or where the 
 pregnancy is not viable'';
            (C) ``ensure the availability of, and effective 
 access to, quality prenatal and post-abortion health 
 care for women and girls''; and
            (D) must not impose restrictions on the ability of 
 women or girls to seek abortion in a manner that 
 ``jeopardize[s] their lives, subject[s] them to 
 physical or mental pain or suffering'', 
 ``discriminate[s] against them or arbitrarily 
 interfere[s] with their privacy'' ``to ensure that 
 women and girls do not have to resort to unsafe 
 abortions''.

    (3) The World Health Organization Abortion Care Guidelines

    (2022) asserts comprehensive abortion care includes the 
 provision of information, abortion management (including 
 induced abortion), and care related to pregnancy loss/
 spontaneous abortion and post-abortion care, and requires 
 supportive law and policy, including--
        (A) full decriminalization of abortion;
        (B) repeal of laws and regulations that restrict 
 abortion by reasons, prohibit abortion based on 
 gestational limits, and require mandatory waiting 
 periods;
            (C) availability of abortion on the request of the 
 woman, girl or other pregnant person and without the 
 need for authorization from any other person, body, or 
 institution;
            (D) ending regulations that limit who can provide 
 and manage abortion care that are inconsistent with 
 World Health Organization guidance; and
        (E) protection of abortion access from barriers 
 created by conscientious refusal.

    (4) Reproductive coercion, which is any behavior that 
 interferes with autonomous decision making about reproductive 
 health outcomes, is a violation of human rights.

    (5) Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and 
 intersex persons (LGBTQI+) face stigma and discrimination in 
 accessing reproductive health services and barriers, including 
 anti-LGBTQI+ laws, policies, and gender norms in many 
 countries.

    (6) People with disabilities have historically been 
 subjected to forced sterilization and coercive abortion 
 practices, eugenics, institutionalization, or guardianship 
 practices that stripped them of their right to autonomy, and 
 barriers to comprehensive reproductive care, including denial 
 of fertility care, access to comprehensive sex education, 
 contraception, and abortion care, and often face disrespect 
 during pregnancy and birth.

    (7) Human rights are grounded in international standards. 
 The Department of State's deletion of the reproductive rights 
 subsection from its 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2024 Country Reports 
 on Human Rights Practices inappropriately politicized human 
 rights of people around the world.

    (8) The dismantling of the United States Agency for 
 International Development

    (USAID) will severely undermine 
 global reproductive health outcomes by disrupting funding for 
 contraception, maternal healthcare, and safe childbirth 
 services. USAID's programs are critical in reducing maternal 
 and infant mortality, preventing unintended pregnancies, and 
 ensuring access to care for marginalized communities worldwide.

    (9) Limiting reproductive rights also limits pathways to 
 economic, social, and political empowerment. Sexual and 
 reproductive health and rights are essential for sustainable 
 economic development, are intrinsically linked to gender 
 equality and women's well-being, and are critical to community 
 health.

    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the denial 
of access to sexual and reproductive health care and associated human 
rights violations due to the barriers described in paragraphs

    (5) and

    (6) of subsection

    (a) should be reported in relevant Department of 
State Annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.

SEC. 3. ANNUAL COUNTRY REPORTS ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES.

    (a) In General.--The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 
et seq.) is amended--

    (1) in 

section 116
            (d) (22 U.S.C. 2151n
            (d) ), by amending 
 paragraph

    (2) to read as follows:
 ``

    (2) the status of reproductive rights in each country, 
 including--
 ``
        (A) whether such country has adopted and enforced 
 policies--
 ``
            (i) to promote access to safe, effective, 
 and affordable methods of contraception and 
 comprehensive, accurate, nondiscriminatory 
 family planning and sexual health information;
 ``
            (ii) to promote access to a full range of 
 quality health care services to ensure safe and 
 healthy pregnancy and childbirth free from 
 violence and discrimination;
 ``
            (iii) to promote the equitable 
 prevention, detection, and treatment of 
 sexually transmitted infections, including HIV 
 and HPV, and of reproductive tract infections 
 and reproductive cancers; and
 ``
            (iv) to expand or restrict access to safe 
 abortion services or post-abortion care, or to 
 criminalize pregnancy-related outcomes, 
 including spontaneous miscarriages or 
 pregnancies outside of marriage;
 ``
        (B) a description of the rates and causes of 
 pregnancy-related injuries and deaths, including deaths 
 due to unsafe abortions;
 ``
            (C) a description of--
 ``
            (i) the nature and extent of instances of 
 discrimination, coercion, and violence against 
 women, girls, and LGBTQI+ individuals in all 
 settings where health care is provided, 
 including in detention;
 ``
            (ii) the nature and extent of instances 
 of discrimination, coercion, and violence 
 against people with disabilities in all 
 settings where reproductive health care is 
 provided, including in institutions and 
 detention settings;
 ``
            (iii) instances of obstetric violence, 
 involuntary or coerced abortion, involuntary or 
 coerced pregnancy, coerced sterilization, use 
 of incentives or disincentives to lower or 
 raise fertility, withholding of information on 
 reproductive health options, and other forms of 
 reproductive and sexual coercion; and
 ``
            (iv) the actions, if any, taken by the 
 government of such country to respond to such 
 discrimination, coercion, and violence, if 
 applicable;
 ``
            (D) a description of--
 ``
            (i) the proportion of individuals of 
 reproductive age (15 through 49 years of age) 
 whose need for family planning is satisfied 
 with modern methods;
 ``
            (ii) the barriers such individuals face 
 in accessing such services;
 ``
            (iii) the nature and extent of instances 
 of denial of comprehensive and accurate family 
 planning information and services in such 
 country; and
 ``
            (iv) the actions, if any, taken by the 
 government of such country to address such 
 denials; and
 ``
        (E) a description of--
 ``
            (i) disparities in access to family 
 planning and reproductive health services and 
 pregnancy-related health outcomes, including 
 pregnancy-related injuries and deaths, based on 
 race, ethnicity, indigenous status, language, 
 religious affiliation, age, marital status, 
 disability, sexual orientation and gender 
 identity, or other marginalized identity; and
 ``
            (ii) any measures taken by the government 
 of such country to hold health systems 
 accountable for addressing such disparities;''; 
 and

    (2) in 

section 502B (22 U.S.C. 2304)--
        (A) by redesignating the second subsection
            (i) (relating to child marriage status) as subsection

    (j) ; 
 and
        (B) by adding at the end the following:
 ``

    (k) Inclusion of Status of Reproductive Rights in Annual Country 
Reports on Human Rights Practices.--The report required under 
subsection

    (b) shall include a description of the status of 
reproductive rights in each country, including--
 ``

    (1) whether such country has adopted and enforced 
 policies--
 ``
        (A) to promote access to safe, effective, and 
 affordable methods of contraception and comprehensive, 
 accurate, non-discriminatory family planning and sexual 
 health information;
 ``
        (B) to promote access to a full range of quality 
 health care services to ensure safe and healthy 
 pregnancy and childbirth, free from violence and 
 discrimination;
 ``
            (C) to promote the equitable prevention, 
 detection, and treatment of sexually transmitted 
 infections, including HIV and HPV, and of reproductive 
 tract infections and reproductive cancers; and
 ``
            (D) to expand or restrict access to safe abortion 
 services or post-abortion care, or criminalize 
 pregnancy-related outcomes, including spontaneous 
 miscarriages and pregnancies outside of marriage;
 ``

    (2) a description of the rates and causes of pregnancy-
 related injuries and deaths, including deaths due to unsafe 
 abortions;
 ``

    (3) a description of--
 ``
        (A) the nature and extent of instances of 
 discrimination, coercion, and violence against women, 
 girls and LGBTQI+ individuals in all settings where 
 health care is provided, including in detention;
 ``
        (B) instances of coerced abortion, coerced 
 pregnancy, coerced sterilization, use of incentives or 
 disincentives to lower or raise fertility, withholding 
 of information on reproductive health options, and 
 other forms of reproductive and sexual coercion; and
 ``
            (C) the actions, if any, taken by the government 
 of such country to respond to such discrimination, 
 coercion, and violence, if applicable;
 ``

    (4) a description of--
 ``
        (A) the proportion of individuals of reproductive 
 age (15 through 49 years of age) whose need for family 
 planning is satisfied with modern methods;
 ``
        (B) the barriers such individuals face in 
 accessing such services;
 ``
            (C) the nature and extent of instances of denial 
 of comprehensive and accurate family planning 
 information and services in such country; and
 ``
            (D) the actions, if any, taken by the government 
 of such country to respond to such denials; and
 ``

    (5) a description of--
 ``
        (A) disparities in access to family planning and 
 reproductive health services and pregnancy-related 
 health outcomes, including pregnancy-related injuries 
 and deaths, based on race, ethnicity, indigenous 
 status, language, religious affiliation, age, marital 
 status, disability, sexual orientation and gender 
 identity, or other marginalized identity; and
 ``
        (B) any measures taken by the government of such 
 country to hold health systems accountable for 
 addressing such disparities.''.

    (b) Consultation Required.--In preparing the Annual Country Reports 
on Human Rights Practices required under sections 116
            (d) and 502B of 
the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended by subsection

    (a) , the 
Secretary of State, the Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, 
Human Rights, and Labor, and other relevant officials, including human 
rights officers at United States diplomatic and consular posts, shall 
consult with--

    (1) representatives of United States civil society and 
 multilateral organizations with demonstrated experience and 
 expertise in sexual and reproductive health and rights or 
 promoting the human rights of women, girls, and LGBTQI+ 
 persons;

    (2) relevant local nongovernmental organizations in all 
 countries included in such reports, including organizations 
 serving women, girls, and LGBTQI+ persons that are focused on 
 sexual and reproductive health and rights; and

    (3) relevant agencies and offices of the United States 
 Government that track or are otherwise involved in the 
 monitoring of reproductive and sexual health around the world.
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