(CNN) -- Vermont is weighing a bill that could make it the first state to legalize same-sex marriage without being prompted by the courts.
Vermont could become the first state to legalize same-sex marriage without prompting from courts.
The state's House Judiciary Committee has scheduled a hearing for Tuesday afternoon to consider a bill that the Vermont Senate passed Monday by a vote of 26-4.
The House is expected to pass the bill.
Republican Gov. Jim Douglas, however, has said he opposes the bill.
"Governor Douglas agrees with President Obama that marriage is between a man and a woman. He supports Vermont's current civil union law, which provides equal rights, benefits, and responsibilities to Vermonters in civil unions," said the governor's spokeswoman, Dennise Casey.
The governor "believes this bill is a distraction from the important work the legislature needs to do to pass a responsible budget and get our economy going again," Casey added.
It is unclear whether both chambers of the state legislature would vote to override a potential gubernatorial veto.
Vermont made history in 2000 by becoming the first state to approve civil unions for gay and lesbian couples.
Massachusetts and Connecticut are the only states that allow same-sex marriage. Vermont, New Hampshire, and New Jersey allow civil unions for gay and lesbian couples.
Vermont legalized civil unions nine years ago in response to a ruling from its high court.
Nationwide, the issue of same-sex marriage remains highly divisive. A June 2008 CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll found that 44 percent of adult Americans believe gay marriage should be recognized by law as valid; 53 percent are opposed.
The issue took center stage in the nation's largest state last November, when California voters narrowly approved a proposition amending the state constitution to ban same-sex marriage. California had been issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples since a May 2008 ruling by the state Supreme Court legalized the unions.
California's high court heard arguments three weeks ago in a case tackling the constitutionality of the controversial ballot proposition. It has not yet issued a decision.
The 1996 federal Defense of Marriage Act effectively bars the federal government from recognizing same-sex unions by defining marriage as "a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife" and a spouse as "a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife."
_________________ stop light plays its part, so I would say you've got a part
Post subject: Re: Vermont on cusp of legalizing same-sex marriage
Posted: Wed Sep 02, 2009 12:47 am
too drunk to moderate properly
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 7:19 pm Posts: 39068 Location: Chapel Hill, NC, USA Gender: Male
Ben & Jerry's Chubby Hubby Renamed 'Hubby Hubby' in Support of Gay Marriage Posted by Adam Kuban, September 1, 2009 at 11:15 AM
The folks at Vermont-based ice cream–maker Ben & Jerry's have renamed their signature Chubby Hubby flavor "Hubby Hubby" to mark today's enactment of the state's new law that allows same-sex marriage.
A Hubby Hubby sundae will be available in Vermont Ben & Jerry's scoop shops during the month of September.
The Chubby Hubby packaging in grocery stores nationwide will remain unchanged and as heteronormative as ever.
_________________ "Though some may think there should be a separation between art/music and politics, it should be reinforced that art can be a form of nonviolent protest." - e.v.
Post subject: Re: Vermont on cusp of legalizing same-sex marriage
Posted: Wed Sep 02, 2009 1:26 am
too drunk to moderate properly
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 7:19 pm Posts: 39068 Location: Chapel Hill, NC, USA Gender: Male
_________________ "Though some may think there should be a separation between art/music and politics, it should be reinforced that art can be a form of nonviolent protest." - e.v.
Post subject: Re: Vermont on cusp of legalizing same-sex marriage
Posted: Thu Sep 03, 2009 12:11 am
too drunk to moderate properly
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 7:19 pm Posts: 39068 Location: Chapel Hill, NC, USA Gender: Male
punkdavid wrote:
LittleWing wrote:
Does the ice cream have twice the nuts as normal?
That's funny.
That's rare.
_________________ "Though some may think there should be a separation between art/music and politics, it should be reinforced that art can be a form of nonviolent protest." - e.v.
_________________ "Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires." -- John Steinbeck
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