AUSTIN, Texas — The Llano City Council has temporarily tabled an ordinance that would have banned people who are seeking abortions from traveling through the city.
Four out of the five Llano City Council members voted to table the vote on the ordinance and possibly revisit it a later date. If passed, the ordinance – which is similar to others passed throughout a handful of rural communities in Texas – would theoretically prohibit travel for people traveling for the sole purpose of obtaining an abortion.
The ordinance could affect people seeking an abortion in the Austin area who are traveling to a state like New Mexico, where abortion is legal. Both SH 71 and SH 29 pass through Llano and are commonly traveled routes to the state from the Austin area.
If the ordinance does eventually pass, it is unclear how it would be enforced, as state highways are policed primarily by the Texas Department of Public Safety rather than local law enforcement.