The Wisconsin Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the state's constitutional marriage amendment, approved by 55 percent of voters in 2006, does not violate the state constitution's two-subject ban.
-- From "Wisconsin Supreme Court upholds gay marriage ban" by Ryan J. Foley, Associated Press Writer 6/30/10
In a 7-0 ruling, the court on Wednesday ruled that the 2006 constitutional amendment was properly put to voters in a statewide referendum.
The court rejected a lawsuit that claimed the amendment violated a rule that limits referendum questions to a single subject. The lawsuit, filed by a voter opposed to the amendment, argued that gay marriage and civil unions were two different subjects.
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From "Wis. & Hawaii latest marriage battlegrounds" by Michael Foust, assistant editor of Baptist Press 7/1/10
"Both sentences of the marriage amendment relate to marriage and tend to effect or carry out the same general purpose of preserving the legal status of marriage in Wisconsin as between only one man and one woman," the court ruled.
The suit was filed by William McConkey, a University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh political science instructor. Wisconsin is among the states whose constitutions prevent amendments that are placed before voters from dealing with more than one subject. Similar lawsuits in Arizona, Florida, Georgia and Louisiana have failed. Thirty states have marriage amendments, although not all of them prohibit civil unions.
In Hawaii, Republican Gov. Linda Lingle has until Tuesday, July 6, to make her decision on a bill that would legalize civil unions in the state. She could either sign, veto or let the bill become law without her signature. The bill, H.B. 444, would grant the legal benefits of marriage to same-sex couples.
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