Links to other web sites

ILLINOIS
CHOOSE LIFE

Links to Other Web Sites

Adoption information and agencies Results by State

The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute
(Research on adoption perception and policy)
www.AdoptionInstitute.org

National Council For Adoption
(Adoption information and awareness)
www.ncfa-usa.org

Sunny Ridge Family Center: Adoption Agency and Adoption Resources in Illinois and Indiana
Sunny Ridge Family Center
270 Remington Blvd, Suite C
Bolingbrook, IL 60440
(630) 754-4500
www.openadoptions.org

Candidate Information (Illinois)

Choose Life license plates in other states

USA Map        Choose Life Update -- provides more details on activities across the nation

Summary: Choose Life license plates are now approved in 33 states, and available in 29, most recently in North Carolina. Wisconsin, Maine, Utah, and Nebraska have obtained approval and expect availability once the minimum number of orders are received. North Carolina acted in June, 2011, but had to wait until a recent Supreme Court ruling before their Choose Life plate became available. The plates are in various stages of seeking approval in 12 additional states. At this point Choose Life plates are blocked in Illinois after the U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal of the negative ruling from the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and the 2011 Choose Life bill introduced in the Illinois Legislature was blocked in committee.

Alabama -- Alabama Choose Life license plates are available, with 66,474 sold/renewed from 2003 through 12-31-2012, raising $2,742,069.

Alaska    --    Choose Life license plates were approved by the state legislature in February, 2012, and went on sale in May, 2012.

Arizona    --    Choose Life license plates became available in May 2009. Over 4,220 have been sold/renewed through 12-31-2012, raising $71,733.

Arkansas -- Choose Life license plates are available with over 22,372 sold/renewed from 2003 thru 2013, raising $559,290.

Connecticut   --   The State of Connecticut requires membership in The Children First Foundation in order to have CFF's Connecticut "Choose Life" license plate on your car or truck. Your $25 yearly CFF membership renewal fee will support pro-life agencies in Connecticut that help women who choose life and adoption for unwanted pregnancies and newborns. For further information, go to CFF's web site at www.ctchoose-life.org. The Connecticut Choose Life plate has 1,753 sold/renewed through 06-30-13, raising $35,062.

Delaware   --   Choose Life plate were approved in February, 2009. Over 794 plates were sold/renewed through 5-15-2013, raising $16,021.

Florida   --   where Choose Life plates originated, with over over 460,967 sold/renewed from 2000 through June 2013), raising $9,219,336; also providing leadership for other state efforts.

Georgia --  The Choose Life license plate became available in October 2007, with 31,180 sold/renewed from Oct 2007 through 3-31-2013, raising $311,800. Go to www.gachoose-life.org to obtain more information about the Georgia Choose Life plate.

Hawaii -- Choose Life license plates became available in 2002 with over 1,340 sold/renewed as of 2013. The Hawaii "Choose Life" license plate is continuing to sell, but the Hawaii Planned Parenthood "Respect Choice" plate has been cancelled for lack of sales. There are only 3 left on vehicles in the state.

Illinois --   The negative ruling by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals on November 7, 2008 was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court on April 16, 2009, but that appeal was denied, so there is no clear path to approval at this time. The January 2007 ruling in favor of Choose Life plates by Judge David Coar was a positive step, but has been overruled on appeal.

Indiana --   The Choose Life license plates became available for purchase in January 2007 with 18,727 sold/renewed through 4-30-2013, raising $468,171.

Iowa --   The Iowa Choose Life plate went on pre-sale in April, 2012, has met the 500 pre-sales required, and the plates have now been manufactured. Get more information here.

Kentucky --   Choose Life plates were available for purchase as of July, 2006, and over 22,407 have been sold/renewed through 2013, raising $224,067. A bill was approved to allow for an administrative approval process of specialty license plates. The Family Trust Foundation of Kentucky, Inc. made formal application for the Choose Life license plate in Kentucky during February 2006.

Louisiana -- Choose Life plates are available with over 7,400 sold/renewed from 2002 through 2011, raising $185,921. All lawsuits have been resolved in favor of the Choose Life license plate. [A lawsuit had stopped sales of all Louisiana specialty plates, but a ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that decision, and released the injunction, so the plates became available again in April, 2006.]

Maine has approved Choose Life license plates. Choose Life Maine has orders for 353 license plates, but needs 2,000 orders before the plates will be produced.

Maryland -- Choose Life license plates are available with 4,482 sold/renewed from 4-13-2003 through 12-31-2010, raising $67,230.

Massachusetts -- Choose Life license plates are available with 2,261 sold/renewed 6-16-2010 through 8-31-2011, raising $63,308. Over 1,700 Choose Life plates were ordered by the time production began earlier in 2010 (a minimum order of 1,500 was needed).

Mississippi -- Choose Life license plates are available with over 88,900 sold/renewed from 2002 thru 2011, raising $2,134,656.

Missouri -- After a March 25, 2008 favorable ruling by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, Missouri Choose Life plates are available now with 189 plates sold/renewed through 6-30-2010, raising $3,780. [Prohibited from using “Choose Life” as a slogan on specialty license plates, Choose Life of Missouri, represented by attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund, filed suit on June 1, 2006 against the Missouri Department of Revenue, charging discrimination against the Choose Life message.]

Montana -- Choose Life license plates became available in January 2004, with 2,958 sold/renewed through 9-30-2010, raising $59,160. The Planned Parenthood plate in Montana called "Pro-Family, Pro-Choice" (and approved in March 2004) has only sold 84, so Choose Life is outselling it 35 to 1.

Nebraska -- The Nebraska Choose Life plate has been approved. Orders are needed for 500 plates before production can begin. Get details here.

New Jersey -- The New Jersey Choose Life license plate became available on December 3, 2010, and has over 350 sold already, raising over $7,100.

New Mexico -- Project Defending Life has gotten the Choose Life plate approved, but funding must still be obtained from the legislature to proceed. Then they need to get the license plate design approved by the DMV and pre-sell a certain number of plates before the state will make them available. If you would like to be one of the first to get the plate in New Mexico, email Fr. Stephen.

North Carolina -- The North Carolina Choose Life plate has been approved. On June 30, 2011, Governor Beverly Perdue signed into law House Bill 289 to "Authorize Various Specialty License Plates.” Her signature brought to a successful conclusion an eight-year effort to make available to North Carolina motorists a license plate that will have the words “Choose Life.” The Choose Life plate became available after a recent Supreme Court ruling.

North Dakota -- The North Dakota Choose Life plate has been approved and is now available. Total pre-sales reached 55 as of 12-15-2011. These orders were turned over to the DMV to start the manufacturing process. These sales raised $1,100 (cost $25, cause receives $20). If you want to order, contact Paul Maloney.

Ohio   --   Choose Life plates became available in May 2005, with over 13,700 sold/renewed through 5/31/2011, raising $274,380.

Oklahoma   -- Choose Life plates became available in 2005, with over 3,850 sold/renewed through 6-30-2011, raising $77,180.

Pennsylvania   --   Choose Life license plates became available in February 2007 with 2725 sold/renewed through 7-31-2011, raising $54,500. They are outselling the "Planned Parenthood of PA" plate by 37 to 1.

South Carolina -- Choose Life license plates were announced as available on October 22, 2008 after the Department of Motor Vehicles had approved the Choose Life plate in May 2008. Nearly 1,275 were sold through 7/31/11. [South Carolina Citizens for Life re-applied for Choose Life plates after South Carolina passed a new law in 2006. That law revised the South Carolina system for specialty plates to satisfy the court ruling against the sale of Choose Life plates as originally approved. This action became necessary when on January 24, 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal of the negative ruling from the Federal 4th Circuit Court of Appeals.]

South Dakota has Choose Life plates available by requesting generic organization plates and then contacting Planning Life (Phone: 605 361-3275; email: michaelp@planninglife.org) to obtain the Choose Life decals for the plates. Over 270 sets sold/renewed through 10-15-2010, raising $6,800.

Texas -- the legislature has approved Choose Life plates as of May 4, 2011 and the bill was signed by the governor on May 17th. The bill was effective 9/1/11 and plates became available in November 2011.

Tennessee has Choose Life license plates available as of December 2006, with over 35,750 plates sold/renewed through 7-31-2011, raising $558,399. [They became available after a decision of the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in favor of the law that established the option to purchase Choose Life license plates in Tennessee, when the opposition's attempt to get a hearing before the U.S. Supreme Court failed in June 2006.]

Utah -- a bill to establish Choose Life plates for Utah was signed into law on 3/30/11 and took effect 10/1/11. It takes 200 applications to begin production and get the plates on the road.

Virginia -- Choose Life plate bill was signed by Gov. Timothy Kaine on 3/30/09, with 3,929 plates sold/renewed from 7-1-09 through 8-31-11, raising $58,935. On 7/1/10 the Planned Parenthood sponsored plate "Trust Women, Respect Choice" became available in Virginia, but Choose Life is outselling it by 7 to 1.

Wisconsin has approved Choose Life plates as of December 2016. Choose Life Wisconsin expects the plates to be available within one year or less.

Lawsuits filed to fight discrimination against Choose Life plates:

Arizona (victory)   --    On January 7, 2009 the Arizona License Plate Commission voted unanimously to approve the Choose Life license plate. This result was the culmination of a lawsuit filed against Arizona for discrimination against the Choose Life license plate. In a September 26, 2005 decision, a federal judge upheld Arizona's denial of "Choose Life" plates on the grounds that license plates are government speech, and the state reasonably acted "to avoid the appearance (of) political favoritism in an otherwise nonpublic forum and maintained state neutrality on the issue.   This decision was appealed to the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. On January 28, 2008 that court ruled in favor of the Arizona Choose Life plate, stating the right of free speech was violated when Arizona refused to issue the Choose Life specialty license plate, but the state appealed. However, that Ninth Circuit ruling was accepted by the U.S. Supreme Court, and Arizona was ordered to offer the Choose Life plate. In a decision issued November 19, 2008, U.S. District Judge Paul G. Rosenblatt ordered the Arizona commission to convene by January 23, 2009 to approve the Choose Life plate.

California (on hold) -- received a court ruling favorable to establishing Choose Life license plates. U.S. District Court Judge Garland E. Burrell ruled the state legislature can issue no more specialty plates until the state establishes a more equitable procedure for authorizing special-interest license plates. Now, Assemblyman Ray Haines has drafted a bill that would set up a neutral-standards process for special interest plates. The Department of Motor Vehicles would run the program, but the legislature would be taken out of the decision-making process. Supporters of Choose Life plates expect they can achieve approval if this bill becomes law, but it was blocked.

Illinois (on hold) --  On January 19, 2007 Judge David Coar ruled in favor of Choose Life plates as freedom of speech and ordered that the plates be produced once the standard requirements were met. Judge Coar granted an indefinite extension of his plate production order after the Illinois Attorney General appealed to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals on February 14, 2007. That hearing occurred on November 27, 2007. An unfavorable ruling was issued by the Seventh Circuit on November 7, 2008. An appeal of that ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied on October 5, 2009.

Missouri (victory) -- After a March 25, 2008 favorable ruling by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, Missouri Choose Life plates are available now and were on the road in 2009 after the first 200 applications were submitted. [Prohibited from using “Choose Life” as a slogan on specialty license plates, Choose Life of Missouri, represented by attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund, filed suit on June 1, 2006 against the Missouri Department of Revenue, charging discrimination against the Choose Life message.]

New Jersey (victory)   -- In December 2010 the state of New Jersey agreed to authorize The Children First Foundation’s life-affirming specialty license plate, prompting the Alliance Defense Fund to voluntarily dismiss its lawsuit. That lawsuit was moving forward after the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals revived the lawsuit with the ruling of a three-judge panel on April 9, 2010. The ruling sent the case back to U.S. District Judge Joel A. Pisano to act on the appeals court decision and move ahead with the lawsuit. Children First Foundation had also asked the Governor of New Jersey to drop the lawsuit, which may have contributed to the state's recent action.

New York (in court)   -- The New York plate won summary judgment in a Federal court ruling telling NY to stop discriminating against this effort and ordering the NY DMV director to approve the Choose Life license plate. However, New York has appealed this ruling, so the fight goes on. Background: A lawsuit against New York for discrimination against the Choose Life license plate won its first court battle in January 2005, but the NY Attorney General appealed the ruling to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. In a decision released on March 7, 2006, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed Attorney General Eliot Spitzer’s second attempt to ban the phrase “Choose Life” from a pro-adoption specialty plate in New York State. The Choose Life plate is winning this suit, but the state is appealing every decision they lose to drag out the suit. The Children First Foundation fully expects to win this suit. [This lawsuit was filed to challenge the current procedure for establishing specialty plates after attempts to get approval for a Choose Life plate were rejected. This case is similar to the case in Illinois.]

Pregnancy help centers

Aid For Women of Northern Lake County
126 W. Madison Avenue
Waukegan, IL 60085
847-249-2700
(fax: 847-249-1276)

Aid For Women
8 S. Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL 60603
312-621-1100
Email: info@aidforwomen.org

Pregnancy Help