A constitutional amendment effectively banning same-sex marriage in the state of Iowa has been introduced in the Iowa House of Representatives, marking the beginning of what promises to be one of the most contentious debates of the 2011 legislative session. The amendment would mandate that marriage between one man and one woman is the only legal union that is valid or recognized in the state.
Predictably, fifty six of the GOP 60-member majority signed on as co-sponsors. The remaining four Republican lawmakers, Peter Cownie, Steven Lukan, Scott Raecker and David Tjepkes, and all 40 Democrats refused to sign on as co-sponsors. In addition, the legislation would also ban civil unions, domestic partnerships and any other legal recognition of same-sex couples.
This amendment would invalidate the Iowa Supreme Court’s unanimous 2009 ruling that legalized same-sex marriage. This is not the first time that LGBT residents of the state have faced such measures. A constitutional ban on same-sex marriage has been repeatedly introduced over the years. The bill came closest to being passed in 2004, when it cleared the Iowa House but fell one vote shy of passage in the Senate, with four Republicans joining all 21 Democrats to kill the measure that year. The next year, the Republican controlled Iowa House passed a gay marriage ban, but an evenly divided Senate never took up the bill.
Democrats were in control of both legislative chambers from 2006 until January, when Republicans captured a majority in the House and promised to once again push a same-sex marriage ban quickly. However, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal has vowed to never allow such an amendment to come up for debate. Democrats still have a 26-24 majority in the Senate.
Carolyn Jenison, executive director of One Iowa, the state’s largest LGBT rights organization, said, “Amending the Iowa Constitution to exclude gay couples will harm thousands of Iowa families. Marriage says ‘we’re a family’ like nothing else and is an important way we care for those we love. Writing discrimination into the Constitution will only divide us at a time when we need to work together to tackle common concerns. Iowans expect their elected officials to focus on issues that matter to everyone, like creating jobs, providing educational opportunities, and improving healthcare. Going backward on equal rights sends the wrong message.”
A worrying postscript concerning Republican opposition to this amendment was that Representative Cownie told The Des Moines Register that he will vote in favor of the amendment, but didn’t sign on as co-sponsor at the request of some constituents in his district.
