Same-Sex Marriage Proposed for DC

Posted on September 24, 2008
Filed Under Gay News Blog

Same-sex marriage could be legalized in D.C. as early as this coming spring if Democrats gain more Congressional seats in November, according to activists and insiders at City Hall.

City Council members David Catania (I-At Large) and Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) are reportedly set to present a same-sex marriage bill to the rest of the Council in January of next year.

“We want a sense of consensus within the various stake-holders,” Graham said. “This is the right thing to do.” He added that he thinks voters are ready for the bill.

Though the proposal has already gained open support from D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty and 10 of the 13 Council members, according to the Washington Blade, there is still a possibility that Congress will overturn the bill if it passes through the Council. The likelihood of Congress’ approval depends on the extent to which the Democrats can expand their majority in the House and Senate in November and also on whether or not California defeats Proposition Eight, which seeks to reverse the legalization of same-sex marriage.

“It’s a great thing for D.C. to have equality for all couples,” Adam Feiler (SFS ’09), president of the GU College Democrats, said.

Nevertheless, he noted that the issue of Congressional approval is likely to pose a serious challenge.
D.C. election laws hold that citizens can overturn a bill, even after it has been approved by the Council, if they attain enough signatures to place an initiative on the ballot.

A recent report by the Williams Institute estimates that there are 3,359 same-sex couples in D.C., and states that if marriages were legalized, 1,680 said they would marry in the first three years.

Same-Sex Marriage Proposed for DC
Georgetown University The Hoya – Washington,DC,USA