Tag: gay marriage

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Rhode Island: Marriage equality bills introduced in both state house and state senate

Marriage equality bills were introduced today in both the Rhode Island House and Senate:

The identical bills were sponsored by Rep. Arthur Handy, D-Cranston, (House bill 5015) and Sen. Donna Nesselbush, D-Pawtucket. Handy said 42 of 75 House members had signed on as cosponsors, while Nesselbush said 11 of 38 Senate members had signed on as of 4:50 p.m. The bills would define marriage as the “legally recognized union” of two people.

The bills would define marriage as the “legally recognized union” of two people.

Same-sex marriage is recognized in nine states, including all the other New England states, as well as the District of Columbia. Thirty-seven states define marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

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Day One of new Congress – House GOP votes to reauthorize DOMA defense fund

As Congress begins its 113th session, House Republicans have pledged to continue funding a legal effort to defend the federal law that prevents the government from recognizing same-sex marriages.

The Republican-led Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group has already spent $1.7 million paying outside legal counsel to intervene in 14 federal challenges to the Defense of Marriage Act in courts since the Obama Administration and the Department of Justice decided to stop defending the law in court in 2011.

Response from LGBT advocacy groups was quick:

Freedom To Marry:

“It’s truly disheartening that, on a day of new beginnings on Capitol Hill, the leadership of the House of Representatives is advancing a measure, through its rules, to continue spending taxpayer dollars on expensive lawyers to defend the so-called Defense of Marriage Act in court.

“This law has been struck down as unconstitutional 10 times, with support from judges appointed by Presidents Nixon, Reagan, and both Bushes. It’s past time for the Republican leadership to listen to their constituents, a majority of whom support the freedom to marry, and stop wasting precious resources in an effort to treat fellow Americans as second-class citizens.”

Human Rights Campaign:

“In their very first act of the 113th Congress, House Republican leaders have written their commitment to their multi-million-dollar defense of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act into the Rules of the House.

“It is particularly disappointing that this historic Congress – with the largest-ever class of openly lesbian, gay and bisexual Members and same-sex congressional spouses – has begun with a vote that disrespects those new Members and all LGBT Americans.

“To date, the GOP leadership in the House has spent nearly $2 million on DOMA – despite the fact that a majority of Americans support marriage equality. The new rules package codifies that the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG), charged with the defense of DOMA, speaks for the entirety of the House. Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and House Democrats, however, oppose spending taxpayer dollars on defending DOMA.

(via JMG)

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Illinois: No marriage equality vote today

IllinoissenateTime is running out for the end of the legislative session on January 9. Senate Democrats say it will not happen this week.

The Windy City Times reports:

Anthony Martinez, executive director of The Civil Rights Agenda, confirmed that Senate Democrats have stated that the vote will not come to pass Jan. 3 or 4. Repeated foibles have raised serious questions about whether the vote can pass by Jan. 9, when new lawmakers are sworn in.

Senate Democrats had hoped for a vote on Thursday, but they failed to secure the votes to waive a 24-hour rule on the posting of the original marriage bill. Democrats then tacked marriage equality onto an unrelated bill in an attempt to push it through faster.

But two supportive senators have been called away from Springfield on family emergencies, leaving sponsors scrambling to secure needed votes.

“It doesn’t mean that the whole marriage equality bill in the lame duck session dies,” said Bernard Cherkasov, CEO of Equality Illinois.

However, a big push remains for supportive senators. The Senate will have to be called back for a special session on Jan. 8 if they are take up marriage equality before Jan. 9. That would mean that the House will be voting on marriage before the Senate takes it up.

The Illinois House is scheduled to reconvene on January 6-7.

UPDATE: Plenty of mixed signals on what’s happening in Illinois, given the earlier report from the Windy City Times on the delayed status of the marriage equality bill, because there is a hearing underway now in the Senate Executive Committee.

You can watch it LIVE HERE.

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Illinois: Same-sex marriage bill vote may happen today

According to Windy City Times, the vote for marriage equality in Illinois state senate may happen as soon as this morning:

Illinois Senators will no longer be voting on the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act, a bill that LGBT leaders had been working for months to gain support on. Instead, the legalization of gay marriage had been added as a Senate amendment to HB4963, a bill that deals with automobile rentals and the Collateral Recovery Act, according to Equality Illinois CEO Bernard Cherkasov.

The move comes after Senate Democrats failed to secure enough votes to waive a 24-hour rule on the posting of the bill Wednesday night. That could have delayed a vote on marriage a day or more.

The amendment will allow the Senate to vote on the bill as early as 11 a.m. this morning.

“Everything can change at a moment’s notice,” said Cherkasov. “It’s still absolutely crucial that people contact their lawmakers.”

UPDATE: Vote may not happen today as two supportive state senators have been called away due to family emergencies. The hope is the vote happens before Jan. 9th when new legislature comes in.

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Illinois: GOP Party Chairman Pat Brady supports same-sex marriage

Well, this is huge for Illinois and marriage equality!

According to DailyHerald.com, Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady of St. Charles is calling GOP lawmakers asking them to support a proposal to legalize same-sex marriage, he said today.

Brady said he was making the calls as a citizen, outside of his official role with the Illinois Republican Party.

“I think it’s time for people to support this,” Brady said.

“More and more Americans understand that if two people want to make a lifelong commitment to each other, government should not stand in their way,” he said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. “Giving gay and lesbian couples the freedom to get married honors the best conservative principles. It strengthens families and reinforces a key Republican value – that the law should treat all citizens equally.”

Lawmakers in Springfield could begin debating the issue at a hearing as early as tomorrow.

(via JMG)

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Minnesota: Same-sex marriage bill to be introduced in “a month or two”

The Minnesota state senator who will take the lead in that chamber on a bill to legalize gay marriage says backers will wait at least a month or two into the upcoming legislative session before they start to push it hard.

Sen. Scott Dibble of Minneapolis says Wednesday that Democrats taking power at the Capitol next week plan to focus early in the session on what he called “kitchen-table issues” of improving the economy and creating jobs.

But he says gay marriage backers in the Legislature want a vote in 2013.

Dibble, who is gay, says he believes allowing same-sex couples to marry is a kitchen-table issue too.

(via CBS)

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Same-sex couples getting married in Maine describe their spouses in one word

Last Friday, Sam Ferrigno of HooplaHa.com, traveled up to Portland to witness some of Maine’s first same-sex marriages. He approached 14 couples with sketch pads, asked them to write how long they’ve been together and to describe each other with one word.

Just one sample: Steven Jones (left) and Jamous Lizotte, two men who might go down in history as the first gay, wreath-crowned couple to get married in Maine.

Lots more joy from the happy day at HooplaHa.com

 

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Marriage equality legislation coming to Rhode Island and Illinois

A marriage equality bill will be introduced in the Rhode Island legislature Thursday, the Providence Journal reports.

State representative Arthur Handy, the bill’s sponsor, said he will need Wednesday to recruit cosponsors, who will include openly gay House speaker Gordon Fox.

Rhode Island legislators have previously abandoned efforts to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples because of insufficient support. The state has had civil unions since 2011, and it recognizes out-of-state same-sex marriages. But it remains the only New England state without marriage equality.

Over in Illinois, a marriage equality bill may be considered as early as today, Windy City Times reports:

The state Senate will be in session Wednesday, and Sen. Heather Stearns is expected to introduce the bill in that chamber this week. “LGBT leaders say that a vote on a bill seeking gay marriage is likely to come sooner rather than later,” the Times reports. Stearns hopes to get the bill voted on quickly so it can then go to the state House, although a report in the Chicago Tribune says she and Rep. Greg Harris, the lead House sponsor, will go for a vote only if they feel assured of passage. Activists from around the state plan to gather tomorrow in Springfield, the capital.

Both chambers have until January 9 to pass the bill in the current legislative session. After that, a new legislature will be seated, meaning advocates will have to restart their lobbying efforts.

(source)

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Maryland celebrates first same-sex marriages!

Maryland is now the ninth state where marriage equality is official, and it’s the first below the Mason-Dixon line.

James Scales and William Tasker were the first couple married at City Hall in Baltimore today, and the ceremony was presided over by none other than Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.

“There is no human institution more sacred than that of the one that you are about to form,” the mayor said. “True marriage, true marriage, is the dearest of all earthly relationships.”

Prior to the ceremony, Scales, a 68-year old employee at the mayor’s office, marveled at finally achieving his dream, telling the AP, “It’s just so hard to believe it’s happening.” And there’s no turning back!

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Maryland: Marriage equality begins at midnight

When the clock strikes midnight tonight, it will mark more than simply the start of a new year for some couples in Maryland — it’s also when Maryland’s new marriage equality law officially takes effect. Some same-sex weddings are already planned for the first moments of 2013.

Since New Year’s Day is a government holiday, courthouses across Maryland are closed. But that didn’t stop Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (D) from taking steps to ensure that same-sex couples won’t have to wait any longer for marriage equality. Rawlings-Blake will open Baltimore’s city hall tonight to allow at least seven same-sex couples to get married, and the mayor plans to serve as an official witness for the wedding ceremonies:

“New Years Day will have a new meaning for the hundreds — if not thousands — of couples who will finally have the right to marry the person they love,” said Mayor Rawlings-Blake.
“It is a remarkable achievement for Maryland, and we are excited to open City Hall to host some of the first wedding ceremonies in our great state. Newly married couples will stand before their friends and family to profess their love and commitment to each other. This is what we worked for, and I am looking forward to take part in this historic and jubilant day.”

The first couple to be married at City Hall will be a longtime aide to the mayor and his partner of 35 years. And even though the courthouses in other Maryland cities may not be open, the early marriage licenses that some same-sex couples in the state were able to begin applying for in December will become official at midnight tonight.

Being on West Coast time, trust and believe that at 9pm my time I’ll raise a glass to the fabulous couples who waited so long but won the right to marry the person they love.  That alone will make my New Year’s Eve fabulous.

In advance of all the celebrations, I want to congratulate all the newlyweds.  Enjoy, take it all in and celebrate!

Forward!

(source)