BATON ROUGE, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – A Louisiana lawmaker is bringing forward a bill this legislative session that she said is tough on crime and protects women amid the state's restrictive abortion ban.

HB166 would require convicted sex offenders to undergo a mandatory vasectomy procedure. Rep. Delisha Boyd (D-New Orleans) explained why she believes this is an appropriate response to the state's new laws.

"What it boils down to is that we are unprotected as women in the state of Louisiana," Boyd said. "Women are an endangered species in Louisiana. We've been told about our health care. We can't get equal pay for women. We need a device in place to have some sort of protection."

Boyd will introduce HB166 in this legislative session. The bill, as proposed, adds penalties to convicted sex offenses by requiring offenders to be subject to a mandatory vasectomy. She said it's in response to the state's highly restrictive abortion ban that does not allow exceptions for rape and incest.

"If we don't allow women to have some form of recourse, then offenders have to fear something for committing rapes, molestation and incest. You want, in this state, for a nine or ten-year-old child who is just getting her cycle and could possibly be raped or molested, usually by someone they know, to have to carry the pregnancy to term. It is horrifying, in my personal opinion," Boyd said.

Boyd said those who commit rape should fear repercussions.

Something she believes her fellow lawmakers can support during this what is considered a tough-on-crime session.

"I'm very hopeful. We are with a governor who wants to focus on crime prevention. Hopefully, they will see this as an actual bill with actual crime prevention in it," Boyd said.

She is also bringing back her bill that would grant exceptions for rape and incest, which failed in committee last year.

"I think it's insane that a committee that's mostly men and a House that's mostly men are making a decision about what a woman can do with her body. I think that's crazy," Boyd said.

She said women's health care access is personal for her because her mother was only 15 years old when a 28-year-old man impregnated her. Her mom passed away when she was young. She said she will continue championing issues that affect Louisiana women and families.

"We love children as long as they're in the womb. For me, if you're serious about pro-life, what pro-life means to me is that I'm going to love them from the womb to the tomb. It's not going to stop once they are born," Boyd said.

HB 166 will go before the House Criminal Justice Committee. Representative Boyd has also introduced a bill that would require insurance companies to cover mandatory mental health screenings for rape victims forced to carry pregnancies to term.

"I'm going to fight for women's rights always. I'm going to fight for African-American women always. But we need women to stand up and use their voices," she said.

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