House endorses $500K deposit into Constitutional Defense Fund for legal judgments
SB 1413, the bill to put another $500,000 in state general funds into the nearly-drained Constitutional Defense Fund to cover legal judgments against the state, has passed the House on a 61-6 vote, after earlier clearing the Senate on a party-line, 28-7 vote. Much of the money in recent years has gone to pay legal fees for Planned Parenthood after the state lost major court cases over anti-abortion legislation that was overturned as unconstitutional; several other cases also have tapped into the fund. The bill now goes to the governor.