The Supreme Court's landmark decision to overturn Roe v. Wade one year ago sparked an explosion of funding to either protect or block abortion access from political groups, billionaires and the government—Forbes tallied where the money in this fierce battle has flowed as Americans' support for abortion rights has broadly increased amid increasing bans and restrictions.
Pro- and anti-abortion rights supporters stage a counter protest during the 50th annual March for ... [+]
One of the biggest chunks of cash comes from the $198.5 million, at least, in new state government funding allocated to supporting reproductive healthcare, including abortion, in the year since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, according to the National Institute for Reproductive Health (based on funding in California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Mexico, New Jersey and Washington), along with $9.4 million in funding from local governments.
But conservative-led states outspent governments supporting abortion rights, putting at least $252.9 million on funding state alternatives to abortion programs since the Dobbs ruling, which directs money to anti-abortion “crisis pregnancy centers.”
Major PACs supporting abortion rights spent $81.4 million on state abortion ballot measures in 2022 (in Kansas, Michigan, Kentucky, California, Montana and Vermont)—including donations from billionaires Michael Bloomberg and Steven Spielberg—while approximately $32.8 million was spent by PACs opposing abortion rights on those ballot measure races, according to state campaign finance data.
Around $19.8 million was raised between June 24, 2022, and the first quarter of 2023 by abortion rights-related PACs affiliated with Planned Parenthood, Emily’s List and NARAL Pro-Choice America, according to data from the Federal Election Commission—the largest PACs dedicated to promoting abortion rights—and the PACs donated $2.2 million to candidates and political committees during that time.
Anti-abortion rights PACs by Susan B. Anthony List, National Right to Life and the National Pro-Life Alliance raised $2.1 million—though some donation numbers were not yet publicly reported for 2023—and donated $846,044.
Pro-abortion rights lobbying groups (primarily affiliated with Planned Parenthood, the Center for Reproductive Rights and NARAL) spent $2.3 million on lobbying efforts between the second quarter of 2022, which included the time Roe was overturned, and the first quarter of 2023, as compared with $1.5 million by anti-abortion lobbying groups, according to data compiled by OpenSecrets.
Increased Abortion Costs: The proliferation of state-level abortion bans has led to increased costs for those seeking abortions, who seek help on travel costs; Melissa Fowler, chief program officer for the National Abortion Federation, told Forbes the organization is now spending $150,000 on travel costs per month—up from $30,000 after Texas outlawed abortion after six weeks in September 2021—and the organization’s spending on hotels, public transportation/flights and rideshares for patients increased by 195%, 235% and 403%, respectively.
Abortion Spending Is Up: The influx of donations has still not been enough to keep up with the increased demand for abortion funds’ help in covering abortion costs: Chelsea Williams-Diggs, executive director of the New York Abortion Access Fund, told reporters on a press call that the fund would run out of money by October at its current rate without additional investment, and the Brigid Alliance told Forbes that their donations are slowing, with revenue down by 152% in May 2023 as compared with the year before (the month when the Dobbs opinion was leaked).
Crisis Pregnancy Centers Still Out-Fundraising: Anti-abortion organizations contacted by Forbes largely did not provide data on their donations over the past year, but despite the influx of donations in support of abortion rights, crisis pregnancy centers—which have historically had a 5:1 funding advantage over pro-abortion rights organizations—likely “still have a major funding advantage” over abortion funds and clinics, Stephanie Peng, research manager at the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP), told Forbes.
Pro-abortion rights groups broadly out-fundraised the anti-abortion efforts when it came to political funding in the 2022 midterms and as the 2024 election cycle gets underway. They also out-spent anti-abortion campaigns when it comes to lobbying in Congress—though abortion rights lobbyists put more money into the quarter in which Roe was overturned, while anti-abortion lobbyists invested more after the ruling. Political spending was also heavily in favor of abortion access when it came to ballot measures carried out in six states, with PACs advocating for abortion rights outspending anti-abortion PACs in some states by 6:1.
Financial support from billionaires who support abortion has dropped in the past 12 months—and is now outweighed by cash from billionaires who are against abortion.
The $198.5 million in new state funding has been focused in states that protect access to abortion, countering the millions spent in conservative-leaning states that have centered their funding on crisis pregnancy centers.
Donations to abortion rights groups spiked in the immediate aftermath of the Dobbs ruling, groups have largely said.
The funding on anti-abortion rights groups is less clear, though they have reported an increase in funds.
The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022, immediately setting off a cascade of state-level bans as the court declared there was no longer a federal right to an abortion. As of June 23, abortion is largely banned in 15 states, while six additional states have imposed bans that have since been at least temporarily blocked in court. Figures from national research project #WeCount estimate 24,290 fewer abortions took place between July 2022 and March 2023 than the national baseline before the Dobbs ruling. Polling shows Americans are largely in favor of abortion rights and the procedure being broadly legal, though support goes down for abortions further into a pregnancy, and the court ruling has been attributed as a factor behind Democratic wins in the 2022 midterms.
The data that’s been publicly reported and provided to Forbes represents only a fraction of the total amount that’s been raised and spent on supporting and opposing abortion over the past year. Key organizations including Planned Parenthood, the National Network of Abortion Funds and NARAL told Forbes they do not yet have final donation data available through 2023 or did not respond to requests to provide it, and legal groups backing fights in state court over abortion rights—including the Center for Reproductive Rights, ACLU and the anti-abortion Alliance Defending Freedom—were unable to provide figures on the legal costs that have been put into that litigation. Political donations are also so far only publicly reported through the end of the first quarter of 2023, which ended March 31, and some campaign donation data from anti-abortion groups still hasn’t been reported yet for that quarter, making their figures incomplete.
100 Days Since Roe V. Wade Was Overturned: The 11 Biggest Consequences (Forbes)
MacKenzie Scott, Michael Bloomberg Among The Biggest Billionaire Donors To Abortion-Rights Groups (Forbes)