Comment Under Georgia law, fetuses now have “full legal recognition” as living human beings. This means their parents can claim them as dependents on their tax returns — even before they give birth. The state Department of Revenue said Monday it will begin recognizing “any unborn child with a detectable human heartbeat … as eligible for the Georgia personal income tax contingent exemption” — of $3,000. Taxpayers should be prepared to provide relevant medical records and documents if requested by the department. The tax benefit is a by-product of law which went into effect on July 20, banning abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy. Georgia House Bill 481 was originally passed in 2019 but was ruled unconstitutional given the protections it provided Roe v. Wade. Once that longstanding precedent was overturned in June, a federal appeals court cleared the way for Georgia’s abortion ban to become law. The court also agreed that “personhood” could be redefined to include fetuses. The concept of incorporating personhood into anti-abortion politics is not new. Among the states that consider fetuses to be separate people are Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas and Missouri, the Associated Press reported. Other states — including Colorado, Mississippi and North Dakota — have tried to follow suit, but proposed legislation has so far failed, according to the AP. EXPLANATION: What is the role of personality in the abortion debate? Georgia’s personality provision is, at present, the most expansive. Not only does it grant tax breaks for fetuses, but requires that they be included in certain population counts. It also orders child support “to the father of an unborn child” — corresponding to “direct medical and pregnancy-related expenses of the mother.” However, given the prevalence of miscarriages and stillbirths, some have wondered what the consequences of new tax policy could mean for those facing pregnancy loss. University of Georgia law professor Anthony Michael Kreis speculated on Twitter that the state treasury could end up “handing out a lot of cash for pregnancies that would never end.” Lauren Groh-Wargo, campaign manager for Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, questioned whether a pregnancy loss could trigger an investigation. “So what happens when you claim your fetus is dependent and then abort later in the pregnancy, you’re being investigated for both tax fraud and illegal abortion?” he wrote on Twitter. Neither the bill nor the guidance issued by the Georgia Department of Revenue addresses what would happen in the event of a discharge. The law also creates other gray areas. For example, what are the consequences for couples using a surrogate? And when it comes to sperm donors or cases of uncertain paternity, who would be responsible for providing child support? The Washington Post has reached out to the Georgia Department of Revenue for clarification. The department’s guidance states that additional information — “including return instructions for claiming the personal exemption for an unborn child with a detectable heartbeat” — will be issued later this year. Stacie Abrams, a Democratic candidate for governor, said on July 20 that she was “outraged” by the law banning abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected. (Video: The Washington Post) Georgia’s ban bans most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, usually around the time doctors can begin to detect heart activity. Exceptions include pregnancies caused by rape and incest, if a police report is filed, and pregnancies that would result in death or serious harm to a woman, although not harm based on a “diagnosis or claim of mental or emotional illness.” In addition, the law does not prohibit terminations for non-viable pregnancies, ectopic pregnancies or spontaneous abortions, commonly known as miscarriages. Georgia law highlights stark differences between states and a dizzying lack of consensus on personhood. Abortions are now banned in these states. See where the laws have changed. In Missouri, abortion is prohibited – except in cases of danger to life – based on the “right to life of the unborn child.” At the same time, a divorce there cannot be finalized if one spouse is pregnant. The reason: The state’s divorce law doesn’t consider fetuses human, so there can’t be a “court order ordering visitation and child support for a child that doesn’t exist,” the Riverfront Times reported. Last month, a case in Texas made headlines when a pregnant woman was pulled over for driving alone in a busy lane. When officers asked where the other passenger was, Brandy Bottone replied that her baby was counted as a passenger given the rollover Roe and the state’s abortion policy. “The laws don’t speak the same language and it was all kind of confusing, frankly,” he told The Post.
