A constitutional amendment that would
limit marriage to a heterosexual union in Minnesota goes to a second
Senate panel Friday.
After hearing more than 3 hours' worth
of testimony last Friday, the Committee on Judiciary and Public
Safety approved Republican Senator Warren Limmer's amendment on an 8
to 4 party-line vote.
The 11-member Senate Rules and
Administration Committee will consider the measure at a meeting that
begins at 9:30AM this morning.
If approved, voters would be asked in
2012 to decide on the definition of marriage. Minnesota law already
bans gay and lesbian couples from marrying, but supporters say the
law remains vulnerable to legal challenges without the amendment.
A companion version of the measure
cleared a House committee earlier this week. Representative
Steve Simon told lawmakers at the hearing that being gay was a gift
from God, earning him national national attention.
Video from a young woman's testimony at
last week's Senate hearing has also gone viral on YouTube.com.
Republican Madeline Koch, 24, told
lawmakers that acceptance of gay people – and their relationships –
is “something Minnesota's next generation of leaders has already
embraced.”
Democratic
Governor Mark Dayton has pledged his support for allowing gay couples
to marry, but Republicans who won control of both chambers of the
Legislature on November 2 don't need his OK to place the question on
the ballot.