It’s a ballsy move, but two Ohio State Representatives have introduced a bill that would make it illegal for men to have unprotected sex if it’s not intended to make a baby.
If the “Conception Begins at Erection Act” passes, men in Ohio could be charged with a felony if they “discharge genetic material” without intending to get a woman pregnant.
However, the bill does provide exceptions if the male partner uses protection or contraception, masturbates on their own, donates sperm or is a member of the LGBTQ+ community.
Think it sounds nutty? You’ll get no arguments from Rep. Anita Somani, who co-sponsored the bill with fellow Democrat Tristan Rader.
In an editorial for the Columbus Dispatch, Somani, a gynecologist, admitted she knows “how ludicrous my sounds,” but said that was the point.
“Is my bill offensive because it dares to attack men? Maybe, but again, as an OB/GYN, I’m against regulating anyone’s reproductive rights,” she said. Those decisions, she argued, ”should be between the patient and the physician without criminal penalties being built into bills conservative organizations are promoting across the country.”
HuffPost has reached out to Somani for details on the bill.
In an interview with CBS Cleveland affiliate WOIO, Somani said there’s no doubt about the damage restrictive abortion laws have had on women.
“What other right do you know of where women have different rights based on where they live versus men?” she asked. “If I live in a state that protects reproductive rights, I have more rights than somebody who lives in a state where reproductive rights have been restricted.”
“Men can go to any state in the United States and have the same rights no matter where they are,” Somani added.
Somani and Rader’s bill is similar to another bill with the same name recently introduced in the Mississippi legislature.
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Under the provisions of that proposed bill, violators wouldn’t face jail time, but would pay $1,000 for the first offense, $5,000 for the second, and $10,000 for three or more offenses. Somani told WOIO that her bill would make ejaculation a felony, which underscores the point she’s trying to make by introducing it.
“We shouldn’t be penalizing reproductive care for anybody, and that, again, is why we have the felony piece of this bill,” Somani said.