Senate lawmakers on Tuesday passed Assembly Bill 43, which would end the exclusion of same-sex couples from the respect, support, protections and responsibilities that come with marriage. The Senate Judiciary Committee approved the bill with a 3-1 vote.
Authored by Assemblymember Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, and sponsored by Equality California, the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act would give same-sex couples the ability to marry. Although lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) couples are allowed to register as domestic partners in California, the exclusion of thousands of loving and committed couples from marriage is perpetuated by maintaining two separate and unequal institutions.
In 2005, the California Legislature became the first legislative body in the nation to approve a bill that would give same-sex couples the choice to marry. This year’s bill is all but identical to that landmark legislation and similarly protects religious freedom by reaffirming the right of religious institutions to choose whether or not they will solemnize marriages between same-sex couples.AB 43 is co-authored by 28 Assemblymembers and 14 Senators, including Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez and Sen. President Pro Tempore Don Perata. A broad coalition of more than 250 civil rights organizations and leaders support the measure, including the NAACP California State Conference, United Farm Workers, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Lambda Legal, Chinese for Affirmative Action, California Teachers Association, ACLU, California Nurses Association, Anti-Defamation League, California National Organization for Women, California Church Impact and the National Center for Lesbian Rights.
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