HJR 6 Senate Hearings
By Byron LaMasters
Our pink friends, In the Pink Texas and Pink Dome are liveblogging the HJR 6 Senate (gay marriage amendment) hearing.
Earlier today, however, there was good news for opponents of the amendment. The Austin American Statesman legislature blog reports:
An effort to add a ban gay marriage to the Texas Constitution has met resistance from a bloc of state senators, but Republican Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said today he is trying to win passage for the proposal.
Dewhurst said 11 senators have sent him a letter saying they’ll block the measure. That’s enough to stop it from coming to the Senate floor because a proposal needs votes from 21 of the 31 senators to come up for debate. Because the resolution calls for a change in the constitution, which also takes 21 of 31, it’s also enough to stop the bill.
“We have a letter from 11 senators asking that HJR 6 not be brought up,” he said. “At the same time I have talked to several of the senators, and I believe that we probably will have the votes to suspend.”
“Suspend” is Senatespeak for bringing a bill to the floor. No promises yet about the bill passing.
The State Affairs Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on the measure this afternoon. The House passed the measure several weeks ago.
Passing the ban out of the Senate and helping it find its way to a public ballot this fall would be a key victory for Dewhurst among the social conservatives who vote in the Republican primary.
My guess is that the 11 senators are all senate Democrats sans Armbrister. I'll update when I know for sure.
Posted by Byron LaMasters at May 19, 2005 08:02 PM
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