Proposal 1 on New York’s ballot this year, dubbed by Gov. Hochul and its legislative proponents as the “Equal Rights Amendment” is a Trojan Horse based on the false premise that abortion rights are somehow in jeopardy in New York State. The state Legislature adopted New York’s abortion law in 1970 and regardless of one’s position on the topic, there is no genuine threat to these laws. However, Prop 1 would seriously erode parental rights, undermine girls’ sports, and create new rights to taxpayer benefits for non-citizens. Prop 1 is a veritable word salad of progressive intentions which ironically doesn’t even mention the term “abortion.” But Prop 1 has dangerous implications for New Yorkers. On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade opinion. Within days, the Legislature and Hochul pushed passage of a constitutional amendment purporting to protect abortion rights. The amendment changes Section 11 of the New York Constitution which currently prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, creed or color and adds new categories of protections. These include age, disability, ethnicity, national origin and sex. The term “sex” includes “sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy”. Each of these categories is already protected from discrimination by state law.  Enshrining these new provisions in the state Constitution however creates conflict with other long-standing laws which prescribe parental control over medical treatments for their minor children. For instance, a school nurse cannot administer Tylenol to a student without parental consent and minors can’t receive tanning treatments with a parent’s permission.  A new constitutional right to gender identity or expression will overcome mere statutory protections giving parents control over medical treatments for their minor children. When courts consider a minor’s demand for transgender treatments like puberty blockers or surgeries Prop 1 will be used to deny parental authority. Similarly, this new right will allow biological males to insist upon their ability to participate on female sports teams. Already, New York State government is consciously eroding parental authority. A 2023 guidance from the State Education Department told school districts that they must keep a child’s desire to change genders secret from parents. This outrageous interference with parental rights is already happening in our state. Parents of a child in central New York have brought a federal lawsuit alleging that their daughter’s middle school actively conspired for three years to hide the student’s desire to be treated as a boy. And new rights granted based on “national origin” will create a constitutional basis to argue for taxpayer benefits for illegal migrants. Already, New York City enacted a law granting voting rights in local elections for non-citizens. While this law has been thwarted in lower courts, it is unclear how the state’s highest court will rule when it considers this case later this year. If Prop 1 is adopted, this new right will surely be cited by left-wing advocates as supporting non-citizen voting. Prop 1 also contains a barely discussed provision which would legalize so-called “reverse discrimination” programs adopted to remedy alleged prior discrimination. Prof. Bill Jacobson at Cornell Law School has written that Prop 1 would “create a DEI exception to the anti-discrimination laws” in New York. This radical provision will be used to justify racial quotas in government contracting, slavery reparations or alter strict admission policies for entrance to New York City’s selective high schools.  Religious liberty is also in jeopardy under Prop 1. Catholic hospitals could be forced to provide gender transition treatments and surgeries. This is why Cardinal Timothy Dolan and New York State’s Catholic bishops have unanimously opposed Prop 1.  Now, a voter might have expected that prior to being asked to consider a constitutional amendment that the Legislature would have held hearings and consulted with legal scholars regarding the implications of the amendment. If you thought that, you’d be wrong. Our Legislature placed this proposed amendment on the ballot with not a single hearing and barely any debate. Prop 1 is pure politics, plain and simple stirring up a phony abortion argument to manipulate voter opinion. Prop 1 is a Trojan Horse intended to sneak new and controversial “rights” into the state Constitution under the guise of protecting abortion. The amendment is based on a lie and should be defeated. Faso served in the U.S. Congress from 2017-2019 and is a former Republican leader of the state Assembly.