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Monday, December 01, 2008

Ind. Law - "State legislators unlikely to tackle same-sex marriage amendment in 2009"

Bill Ruthhart of the Indianapolis Star has a lengthy front-page story today reporting:

Though the number of states adopting bans on same-sex marriage grows, the odds appear slim that Indiana lawmakers will give serious consideration to such a constitutional amendment next year.

It's not because social conservatives won't push for it again.
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But after the effort died twice, the long and complicated process of amending the constitution would have to start all over again, and no one in the Statehouse seems prepared to go to the ramparts.

Even the Republican lawmaker who has pushed the measure in the past says he doesn't plan to do so in the 2009 session.

"I think the issue is still relevant in that it continues to be debated in a variety of states and continues to be heard by a variety of courts," said state Sen. Brandt Hershman, R-Wheatfield.

"However, if action is to be taken this time, it would be my intent to see it start in the House, because that's been the holdup in the past, and until that legislative entanglement is resolved, there's not much to be achieved through the Senate yet again."

The Indiana Senate, controlled by Republicans, has voted three times to pass the amendment. The House, however, is controlled by Democrats, and Speaker B. Patrick Bauer has not shown a willingness to allow a floor vote on the issue.

Bauer, D-South Bend, has said he thinks Indiana's law prohibiting same-sex marriages is enough.

"I've been asking people to show me that the current law has been broken, and they haven't showed me yet. I want to see the couples that were illegally married," he said earlier this year when asked about the prospects of a constitutional amendment. * * *

Though marriage under Indiana law is defined as the union between a man and a woman, proponents of the amendment say they want to protect their position in the state constitution to prevent judges from misinterpreting the law or overruling it.

Opponents contend not only that current law is sufficient but that an amendment would constitutionally shield a form of discrimination.

Nationwide, 30 states have passed constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriages. Arizona, California and Florida approved their measures in November.

A side-bar to the story gives "key dates" in the "history of same-sex marriage laws," as compiled by the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on December 1, 2008 07:47 AM
Posted to Indiana Law