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Loading ...Vermont Senate takes up gay marriage
03.23.2009 8:50am EDT
(Montpelier, Vermont) The Vermont Senate will meet in a special session today to take up a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage in the state.
The measure would replace Vermont’s first-in-the-nation civil unions law with one that allows marriage of same-sex partners beginning Sept. 1. Civil unions, which confer some rights similar to marriage, would still be recognized but no longer granted after Sept. 1.The Judiciary Committee voted 5-0 on Friday to advance the bill.
Senate President Pro Tempore Peter Shumlin (D), a sponsor of the bill, wasted no time in calling the special session to deal with the legislation. A vote by the full Senate is expected this afternoon.
Shumlin said he expects the bill to easily pass the Senate. It would then need approval in the House where the vote is likely to be closer. House Speaker Shap Smith (D) said he expects the bill to be approved. But whether Gov. James Douglas (R) will sign it is another question.
Douglas chastised the legislature for spending time on the bill when it should be focused on the economy and has said that he believes the civil union law is sufficient for same-sex couples. He has not said, however, if he intends to veto it.
If Douglas were to nix the bill it is unclear if there are enough votes to override a veto.
Supporters cast the debate as a civil rights issue, saying a civil unions law enacted by the state in 2000 has fallen short of the equality it promised same-sex couples. Its appeal has declined, too: In 2001, the state granted 1,876 civil unions, compared with only 262 last year.
An impact study released earlier this month suggests there is a link between the economy and gay marriage.
The study, by the Williams Institute at UCLA, found that approval of gay marriage in Vermont could generate $31 million in new spending and $3.3 million in state taxes over three years.
Last November, Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, the Boston-based LGBT rights group that brought the successful legal challenges leading to same-sex marriage in Massachusetts and Connecticut launched the “Six by Twelve” campaign to legalize gay marriage throughout all six New England states by 2012.
Opponents say gay marriage would undermine traditional male-female marriage, rendering men and women interchangeable and destroying the connection between children and marriage. They want the question put to voters in a referendum.
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Marvin Said: March 23rd, 2009 at 10:58 am
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Just say no to “Fag” marriage. We did here in California. They are disgusting and are no different than pedophiles.
Well, another IGNORANT homophobe heard from. Your failure to check the statistics on pedophilia prior to opening your mouth and issuing your unfounded opinion is very apparent.
You can believe that the Right Wing Religious Charlatans will be working to prevent the passage.
Religion is a study in Hypocrisy. One of the purposes of organized religious institutions is to promote terror, hate, bigotry, prejudice, intolerance to anything other than their abhorrence. Religion demands complete control of their members mind, thoughts, beliefs, and judgment.
Through Fear and Deception religion Legislates and Legalizes Discrimination and prevent Legislation that would give Equal Rights. Just assess what happened in California with Prop 8!
Jay… “We must ’sue’ for polygamist marriage and allowing marriage of siblings”????????????????
By “We”, I assume you are referring to yourself ??? … I do believe that the Federal & State Courts have already weighed in, and set precident, on the illegality of both incest & multiple wives, which pretty much makes your attempting to “sue” for marriage rights a rather moot point, and quite illegal. If you want to marry your sister, or mother, or marry multiple relatives or wives, same or opposite sex, it is a legal certainty that no amount of finger pointing against gay marriage will take the heat off of yourself on this one.
First off, Gay marriage has been ‘made’ illegal by DOMA, State Initiatives/Ballot Measures, & Constitutional Ammendments, etc., as NO civil law that specifically defined marriage as between a man & a woman has ever existed prior.
Gay marriage is neither incest nor is it polygamy, and additionally, whether referring to a “gay couple” or a “straight couple”, it is the exact same marriage license either way. The actual marriage license does NOT grant rights of incest or polygamy, period ! Same applies to the other typically tiring arguments of beastiality or pedophile.
Marvin Said: March 23rd, 2009 at 10:58 am
“They are disgusting and are no different than pedophiles.”
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That also describes many Catholic Priests, yet the Catholic Church along with The Church of Present-Day H8 were the largest contributors /supporters of H8.
Marvin & Jay…
Cruising a gay web site…
Don’t like gay marriage…
Bitter Queens?
Couple has a nice ring to it though.
Marvin and Jay: why is it that every time marriage equality comes up, “breeders” jump from THAT to polygamy, incest, bestiality, etc.?
There is no connection between any of those and two committed individuals of the same sex wanting to share their lives with the same legal protections opposite-sex couples enjoy.
Burgie and I are one of the 18,000 couples who are waiting to see if the CA Supreme Court will invalidate our marriage.
Read that sentence again.
Can you imagine anything more PREPOSTEROUS than a COURT *un-marrying* 18,000 couples, AFTER the SAME court said we could marry?
What’s next? The religious bigots mounting an initiative to ban inter-racial or inter-faith marriages???
Marvin and Jay are perfect examples of why potential parents should be screened before being allowed to procreate. Just to make sure those extra chromosomes aren’t involved.
Dr. Bob Brogna M.D.P.C. Said: “Currently fighting for marriage equality, we wonder if any lawyers out there have an opinion on whether the full faith and credit clause can be used in Florida to validate our marriage.”
The DOMA was specifically enacted to invalidated the Full Faith & Credit clause in terms of gay marriage. It is a law designed to circumvent the Constitution.
We must sue for polygamist marriage and allowing marriage of siblings. Equality! Keep the ball rolling!
State and Federal Constitutions under our Republic, guarantee inalienable rights that can not be taken away by a simple majority vote by the people. “Let the people vote” is a distortion of equal right protections, and should never be allowed when it comes to taking rights away from a selected minority. Those states which have allowed discriminatory ballot initiatives are dismantling everyone’s constitutional rights and must be challenged as unconstitutional and discriminatory.
Dr. Nolan We wish you every success in your upcoming marriage in Connecticut. After 50 years together We married in Mass. 2004 and now live in Florida. Currently fighting for marriage equality, we wonder if any lawyers out there have an opinion on whether the full faith and credit clause can be used in Florida to validate our marriage.
Dr. Nolan: congratulations to you and your partner! Ad multos annos!
Burgie and I have been together for 35 years; we’re waiting to see if the CA Supreme Court will void OUR marriage. We married last Sept. 17th during the period when it was legal in California.
“Opponents say gay marriage would undermine traditional male-female marriage, rendering men and women interchangeable…”
I’m thoroughly confused. In the zeal of same-gender marriage foes, somehow, along the way, they forgot that men and women are equal. Hearing things like “rendering men and women interchangeable” (as if that were a bad thing) reminds me of my southern roots, where women are subordinate to men. These zealots against same-gender marriage may as well be saying, “Same-gender marriage will render women workers instead of stay-at-home moms or presidents of corporations instead of members of the PTA.” Gasp! Men and women are interchangeable except for one thing, and in one specific event– procreation.
At age 72, partners for 53 years, retired in West Palm Beach, we shall be married in our College’s Chapel in Hartford – during our 50th Class Reunion in June. We are grateful that the State of Connecticut will allow us to marry on the very campus our life together began in 1955. Surely there are others who have significant ties to VT and would welcome the opportunity to marry, even if they now live in states that do not yet authorize legal, same-sex marriages. As our FL lawyer advised us, at least our CT marriage certificate will most likely be persuasive in medical crises (especially if the Palm Beach County Domestic Partners registry is obliterated, as was engineered in Michigan). As a Christian family, we are looking forward to the legalization of our marriage during a Christian Service of Worship.
People say we can’t eat off the whole thing. Some people say we can’t win marriage equality in America. Some people say we can’t get it done.
But we can eat the whole elephant, gop or other. We just have to take one bite at a time.
Vermont was one of the first bites. And here it takes another one.