Lawmakers in California are calling on
Congress to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).
With a 22-12 vote Monday, the
California Senate joined the Assembly in approving the resolution
urging Congressional leaders to overturn the gay marriage ban.
“We're proud of the California
legislature for making the state's opposition to DOMA official state
policy,” Geoff Kors, executive director of Equality California, the
state's largest gay advocate, said. “Now we must overturn this
discriminatory federal law and pave the way for the marriages of
same-sex couples to be recognized at the federal level.”
The Clinton-era law defines marriage as
a heterosexual union for federal agencies and allows states to ignore
the legal marriages of gay couples from outside their borders.
“President Obama has called his law
abhorrent in the way it denies more than 1,000 federal rights to
same-sex couples,” Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, a Democrat from
Santa Monica who introduced the measure, said. “Congress must act
now to overturn DOMA, which is rooted in irrational and unfounded
prejudice. Married same-sex couples deserve equal access to these
benefits.”
The Obama administration has yet to
announce whether it will appeal a
federal judge's ruling that struck down portions of DOMA as
unconstitutional.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Joseph
Tauro suspended his ruling for 60 days while the U.S. Department of
Justice decides whether it will appeal.
Tauro's ruling only
affects the state of Massachusetts, but should the government appeal
to a higher court with a broader jurisdiction its impact could
spread.
While the president
has repeatedly said he opposes DOMA, he has yet to endorse New York
Congressman Jerrold Nadler's Respect
for Marriage Act, a bill that seeks to repeal the law.