Catholic World News News Feature
Massachusetts legislature kills pro-marriage amendment June 14, 2007
The state legislature of Massachusetts, meeting in a constitutional convention on June 14, decisively defeated a proposed constitutional amendment to protect marriage.
By a vote of 151- 45, the legislature voted against a proposal that had won the support of over 100,000 Massachusetts voters. The proposal would have defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman, effectively overturning a decision by the state's highest court that led to legal recognition of same-sex marriage.
Under the terms of the Massachusetts constitution, the proposed amendment needed the support of just 50 legislators in order to be placed on the ballot for a statewide vote in November 2008. Because the proposal did not reach that minimum level of support, the amendment is defeated.
Massachusetts is the only state in the US to provide full legal recognition to same-sex marriage.
