The Montana House of Representatives has passed a bill that would recognize unborn children as persons.

The bill, HB 425, now moves to the Senate.  If the bill passes the Senate, it would put the measure on the ballot for voters to amend the state Constitution.

“No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, the bill reads. “As used in this section, the word ‘person’ applies to all members of the species Homo sapiens at any stage of development, including the stage of fertilization or conception, regardless of age, health, level of functioning, or condition of dependency.”

The sponsor of the bill, Rep. Matthew Monforton, says the bill would restore the state’s abortion law to the pre-Roe v. Wade state.  He said that it would sanctify the life of a child.

The Guttmacher Institute said that in 2011, the last year of recorded data, 2,200 women killed their children via abortion in the state.