Va. House passes bill lifting prohibition on for-profit surrogacy brokers

In a split vote, the Democratic-led Virginia House of Delegates passed a bill Thursday that would lift a longstanding but seemingly never-used law meant to block anyone from making money by pressuring women to become surrogate mothers.

Proponents of the legislation, which passed 50-48 over GOP opposition, say it would remove a law that has had no real-world impact other than scaring people trying to start or grow families through surrogacy by raising the specter of criminal charges.

Though some people who connect would-be parents with prospective surrogates and help both sides through the process already make a profit from their services, supporters say there’s no evidence anyone has ever used the type of coercive tactics the decades-old law was put in place to prevent.

Colleen Maria Quinn, an attorney who specializes in family law governing adoption and surrogacy, told lawmakers no other state has a criminal prohibition like the one in Virginia.

“This 30-year-old statute is just absolutely obsolete, and it’s not enforced,” Quinn said at a House subcommittee hearing last month.

Responding to claims the proposal would overly commercialize an industry in which financial incentives should play little or no role, Del. Rip Sullivan, D-Fairfax, said there are already legal and professional safeguards in place to ensure prospective surrogates don’t feel pressured.

“You’ve got to have your own lawyer, for goodness’ sake,” Sullivan said, “who’s obligated to make sure you’re acting of your own free will.”

Both political parties, Sullivan said, often talk about making Virginia the best place to “raise a family.”

“We ought to be removing outdated parts of the code that may chill Virginians’ ability to do just that,” he said.

The law at issue prohibits compensation for “recruiting or procuring surrogates” or “arranging or inducing an intended parent and surrogate to enter into surrogacy contracts.” Violations are a class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 12 months in jail or a fine of up to $2,500.

While the bill is being presented as pro-family, it’s drawn strong pushback from socially conservative groups and Republican lawmakers who say it could lead to the exploitation of poor women and the commodification of human life.

“We’re putting a dollar amount on a woman’s womb,” said Tom Intorcio of the Virginia Catholic Conference, which opposes surrogacy altogether. “We’re making them pregnancy machines in third-world countries.”

Last month, Pope Francis called for a global ban on surrogacy, calling the practice a “grave violation of the dignity of the woman and the child.”

Virginia’s laws on surrogacy contracts and compensation only allow surrogates to be reimbursed for medical bills and other ancillary living expenses during the pregnancy. The state doesn’t allow direct payment to surrogates solely for having a baby on someone else’s behalf.

“It is and will remain illegal in Virginia to pay a woman to carry a baby,” Sullivan said Wednesday during debate on the House floor.

Those assurances weren’t enough for Republican delegates who opposed the bill.

In a back-and-forth with Sullivan, Del. Mark Earley Jr., R-Chesterfield, called the measure a step toward a “dystopian future,” adding that there’s a “huge power imbalance” between people looking for surrogates and lower-income women who can meet that need.

“There used to be a booming commercial surrogacy market in places like India and Thailand until there were enough horror stories that they finally pared it back,” Earley said.

In response to Earley, Del. Candi Mundon King, D-Prince William, said the bill would give more choices to women with “skin in this child-bearing game.”

“Being economically disadvantaged does not make you any less intelligent. It does not make you any less able to make your own decisions, whether they be financial, health or otherwise.,” said Mundon King. “We should be careful not to stigmatize those who are economically disadvantaged or put them into a category that they cannot understand how complicated and deeply personal surrogacy is.”

The legislation now goes to the state Senate. If it passes the upper chamber, also controlled by Democrats, it will then go to Gov. Glenn Youngkin for approval, veto or amendment.

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This article first appeared on Virginia Mercury and is republished here with permission. Virginia Mercury is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Virginia Mercury maintains editorial independence.