Same-sex marriage in Connecticut
Encyclopedia
Connecticut
joined Massachusetts
as one of two states
in the U.S. to perform marriages of same-sex couples
on November 12, 2008. Connecticut was the third state to do so, but only the second where the decision was not repealed.
) to adopt civil unions, and the first to do so without judicial intervention. The bill was passed by the House on April 13, and by the Senate on April 20. Governor Jodi Rell
(a moderate Republican) signed the bill into law later the same day, and it went into effect on October 1, 2005.
The decision to provide for civil unions and not same-sex marriage was controversial and was challenged in the state's courts. On October 10, 2008, the Supreme Court of Connecticut, in Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health
, ruled that failing to give same-sex couples the full rights, responsibilities and name of marriage was against the equal protection clause of the state's constitution
, and ordered same-sex marriage legalized.
On October 1, 2010, all existing civil unions were automatically transformed into marriages.
representing eight gay couples from Connecticut, brought a legal action before the state's courts, challenging what they described as the state's discriminatory exclusion of same-sex couples from the right to marry. They argued that this discrimination violated the equality and liberty provisions of the Connecticut Constitution
and are supported by the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union. The case was opposed by the Family Institute of Connecticut
; however, they were denied intervenor status in the case.
On July 12, 2006 a Superior Court judge court ruled against them arguing that:
The judge concluded that denying same-sex couples the right to marry does not violate Connecticut's Constitution.
The Supreme Court of Connecticut heard an appeal by the plaintiffs in Kerrigan and Mock v. Connecticut Department of Public Health, on May 14, 2007. The Attorney General's office represented the state in opposition to the appeal, but Attorney General Richard Blumenthal
did not argue the case, sending a subordinate to represent the state. On October 10, 2008, the court released an opinion guaranteeing same-sex marriage rights. The Supreme Court ruled 4-3 that denying gays the right to marry was against the equality and liberty rules in the Connecticut Constitution. The court also held that it similarly would be unconstitutional to relegate same-sex couples to a status less than full marriage by enacting legislation treating same-sex unions as civil unions rather than marriage. On Wednesday, November 12, 2008, pursuant to the order and decision of the Supreme Court of Connecticut, the first marriages licenses were issued to same-sex couples in Connecticut. At the time, it made Connecticut only the third state ever to recognize same-sex marriage. Soon after, Connecticut actually became the second state to allow same-sex marriage because of the passing of a same-sex marriage ban
in California, just days before the first same-sex marriages were given in Connecticut. Critics contended that rulings granting same-sex couples the right to marry such as the Connecticut Supreme Court's decision in Kerrigan and Mock v. Connecticut Department of Public Health overstep the constitutional authority of the judicial branch. However, defenders argue that almost every civil rights disagreement in the U.S. has ultimately been decided by the courts, not in Congress.
and State Representative Michael Lawlor, Co-Chairpersons of the Judiciary Committee, announced the introduction of a bill that would give same-sex couples full marriage rights in the state of Connecticut. The bill, HB 7395, successfully passed the judiciary committee by a vote of 27–15 on April 12, 2007. At the time, Connecticut became only the third state in U.S. history, after Massachusetts, then California, to have a legislative body vote in favor of same-sex marriage. Opponents of same-sex marriage have said they want a non-binding public referendum on the issue, however not a single legislator, Democrat or Republican, introduced a bill that would have done so. When it was offered in committee as an amendment, it was defeated by a bipartisan vote.
Governor Jodi Rell
had said she would veto any same-sex marriage legislation that came across her desk. She said the civil unions law "covered the concerns that have been raised". The bill was never submitted to the full House or Senate prior to adjournment of the 2007 session, and it is superfluous because the October 2008 court decision mandated the right to same-sex marriage.
. Governor Jodi Rell
, a Republican, signed the law on April 23. On October 1, 2010, civil unions ceased to be provided and existing civil unions were automatically converted into marriages. Until then, existing civil unions were kept and couples could upgrade to marriage voluntarily. Same-sex marriages, civil unions and broad domestic partnerships from other jurisdictions are legally treated as marriages in Connecticut.
poll released April 7, 2005, the day after the Senate approved civil unions, showed that 56% of registered voters were in support of their action, while 37% were opposed to it. The poll shows 42% approved same-sex marriage, while 53% opposed. Democrats backed same-sex civil unions 66–29 percent and same-sex marriage 53–42 percent. Republicans were narrowly divided on civil unions, with 45 percent in favor and 48 percent opposed. But Republicans opposed same-sex marriage 70–26 percent. Independent voters supported civil unions 56–37 percent, but opposed same-sex marriage 52–42 percent. Women voters supported civil unions 60–34 percent, but split 47–48 percent on same-sex marriage. Men backed civil unions 52–42 percent, but opposed same-sex marriage 59–36 percent.
A September 2011 Public Policy Polling
survey found that 55% of Connecticut voters thought that same-sex marriage should be legal, while 32% thought it should be illegal and 13% were not sure. A separate question on the same survey found that 81% of respondents supported legal recognition of same-sex couples, with 47% supporting same-sex marriage, 34% supporting civil unions, 16% opposing all legal recognition and 3% not sure.
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
joined Massachusetts
Same-sex marriage in Massachusetts
Same-sex marriage in the U.S. state of Massachusetts began on May 17, 2004, as a result of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruling in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that it was unconstitutional under the Massachusetts constitution to allow only heterosexual couples to marry...
as one of two states
Same-sex marriage in the United States
The federal government does not recognize same-sex marriage in the United States, but such marriages are recognized by some individual states. The lack of federal recognition was codified in 1996 by the Defense of Marriage Act, before Massachusetts became the first state to grant marriage licenses...
in the U.S. to perform marriages of same-sex couples
Same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
on November 12, 2008. Connecticut was the third state to do so, but only the second where the decision was not repealed.
Civil union
The state enacted a civil union law in 2005 that provides same-sex couples with the same rights and responsibilities under state law as marriage. Connecticut became the second state in the United States (following VermontVermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
) to adopt civil unions, and the first to do so without judicial intervention. The bill was passed by the House on April 13, and by the Senate on April 20. Governor Jodi Rell
Jodi Rell
Mary Jodi Rell is a Republican politician and was the 87th Governor of the U.S. state of Connecticut from 2004 until 2011. She was the Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut under Governor John G. Rowland, who resigned during a corruption investigation. Rell is Connecticut's second female Governor,...
(a moderate Republican) signed the bill into law later the same day, and it went into effect on October 1, 2005.
The decision to provide for civil unions and not same-sex marriage was controversial and was challenged in the state's courts. On October 10, 2008, the Supreme Court of Connecticut, in Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health
Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health
Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health, 289 Conn. 135, 957 A.2d 407, is a 2008 decision by the Connecticut Supreme Court holding that the Connecticut Constitution protects the right to same-sex marriage. The vote was 4-3. The decision made Connecticut the third state to have its state supreme...
, ruled that failing to give same-sex couples the full rights, responsibilities and name of marriage was against the equal protection clause of the state's constitution
Connecticut Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Connecticut is the basic governing document of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was approved by referendum on December 14, 1965, and proclaimed by the governor as adopted on December 30. It is the second constitution that the state has had...
, and ordered same-sex marriage legalized.
On October 1, 2010, all existing civil unions were automatically transformed into marriages.
Court case
In August 2004, Gay and Lesbian Advocates and DefendersGay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders is a non-profit legal rights organization in the United States. The organization was founded in 1978, and works toward ending discrimination based on sexual orientation, HIV status, and gender identity and expression.GLAD is based in Boston, Massachusetts, and...
representing eight gay couples from Connecticut, brought a legal action before the state's courts, challenging what they described as the state's discriminatory exclusion of same-sex couples from the right to marry. They argued that this discrimination violated the equality and liberty provisions of the Connecticut Constitution
Connecticut Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Connecticut is the basic governing document of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was approved by referendum on December 14, 1965, and proclaimed by the governor as adopted on December 30. It is the second constitution that the state has had...
and are supported by the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union. The case was opposed by the Family Institute of Connecticut
Family Institute of Connecticut
The Family Institute of Connecticut is an interdenominational, conservative 501 non-profit educational organization founded in 1989. Its stated goal is to encourage and strengthen the family as the foundation of society and to promote Judeo-Christian ethical and moral values in the culture and...
; however, they were denied intervenor status in the case.
On July 12, 2006 a Superior Court judge court ruled against them arguing that:
The judge concluded that denying same-sex couples the right to marry does not violate Connecticut's Constitution.
The Supreme Court of Connecticut heard an appeal by the plaintiffs in Kerrigan and Mock v. Connecticut Department of Public Health, on May 14, 2007. The Attorney General's office represented the state in opposition to the appeal, but Attorney General Richard Blumenthal
Richard Blumenthal
Richard Blumenthal is the junior United States Senator from Connecticut and a member of the Democratic Party. Previously, he served as Attorney General of Connecticut....
did not argue the case, sending a subordinate to represent the state. On October 10, 2008, the court released an opinion guaranteeing same-sex marriage rights. The Supreme Court ruled 4-3 that denying gays the right to marry was against the equality and liberty rules in the Connecticut Constitution. The court also held that it similarly would be unconstitutional to relegate same-sex couples to a status less than full marriage by enacting legislation treating same-sex unions as civil unions rather than marriage. On Wednesday, November 12, 2008, pursuant to the order and decision of the Supreme Court of Connecticut, the first marriages licenses were issued to same-sex couples in Connecticut. At the time, it made Connecticut only the third state ever to recognize same-sex marriage. Soon after, Connecticut actually became the second state to allow same-sex marriage because of the passing of a same-sex marriage ban
California Proposition 8 (2008)
Proposition 8 was a ballot proposition and constitutional amendment passed in the November 2008 state elections...
in California, just days before the first same-sex marriages were given in Connecticut. Critics contended that rulings granting same-sex couples the right to marry such as the Connecticut Supreme Court's decision in Kerrigan and Mock v. Connecticut Department of Public Health overstep the constitutional authority of the judicial branch. However, defenders argue that almost every civil rights disagreement in the U.S. has ultimately been decided by the courts, not in Congress.
Legislative action
On January 31, 2007, State Senator Andrew J. McDonaldAndrew J. McDonald
Andrew J. McDonald is an American lawyer and politician from Connecticut. A Democrat, he served as a member of the Connecticut State Senate from 2003 to 2011, representing the state's 27th district in Stamford and Darien...
and State Representative Michael Lawlor, Co-Chairpersons of the Judiciary Committee, announced the introduction of a bill that would give same-sex couples full marriage rights in the state of Connecticut. The bill, HB 7395, successfully passed the judiciary committee by a vote of 27–15 on April 12, 2007. At the time, Connecticut became only the third state in U.S. history, after Massachusetts, then California, to have a legislative body vote in favor of same-sex marriage. Opponents of same-sex marriage have said they want a non-binding public referendum on the issue, however not a single legislator, Democrat or Republican, introduced a bill that would have done so. When it was offered in committee as an amendment, it was defeated by a bipartisan vote.
Governor Jodi Rell
Jodi Rell
Mary Jodi Rell is a Republican politician and was the 87th Governor of the U.S. state of Connecticut from 2004 until 2011. She was the Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut under Governor John G. Rowland, who resigned during a corruption investigation. Rell is Connecticut's second female Governor,...
had said she would veto any same-sex marriage legislation that came across her desk. She said the civil unions law "covered the concerns that have been raised". The bill was never submitted to the full House or Senate prior to adjournment of the 2007 session, and it is superfluous because the October 2008 court decision mandated the right to same-sex marriage.
Updates to all marriage statutes
On April 22, 2009 lawmakers of Connecticut both in the House (vote 100-44) and in the Senate (vote 28-7) agreed to repeal all the old marriage laws and fully replace them with genderless quotes and all references to marriage will be fully gender-neutralGender-neutral
Gender neutrality describes the idea that language and other social institutions should avoid distinguishing people by their gender, in order to avoid discrimination arising from the impression that there are social roles for which one gender is more suited than the other...
. Governor Jodi Rell
Jodi Rell
Mary Jodi Rell is a Republican politician and was the 87th Governor of the U.S. state of Connecticut from 2004 until 2011. She was the Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut under Governor John G. Rowland, who resigned during a corruption investigation. Rell is Connecticut's second female Governor,...
, a Republican, signed the law on April 23. On October 1, 2010, civil unions ceased to be provided and existing civil unions were automatically converted into marriages. Until then, existing civil unions were kept and couples could upgrade to marriage voluntarily. Same-sex marriages, civil unions and broad domestic partnerships from other jurisdictions are legally treated as marriages in Connecticut.
Public opinion
A Quinnipiac UniversityQuinnipiac University
Quinnipiac University is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational university located in Hamden, Connecticut, United States at the foot of Sleeping Giant State Park...
poll released April 7, 2005, the day after the Senate approved civil unions, showed that 56% of registered voters were in support of their action, while 37% were opposed to it. The poll shows 42% approved same-sex marriage, while 53% opposed. Democrats backed same-sex civil unions 66–29 percent and same-sex marriage 53–42 percent. Republicans were narrowly divided on civil unions, with 45 percent in favor and 48 percent opposed. But Republicans opposed same-sex marriage 70–26 percent. Independent voters supported civil unions 56–37 percent, but opposed same-sex marriage 52–42 percent. Women voters supported civil unions 60–34 percent, but split 47–48 percent on same-sex marriage. Men backed civil unions 52–42 percent, but opposed same-sex marriage 59–36 percent.
A September 2011 Public Policy Polling
Public Policy Polling
Public Policy Polling is an American Democratic Party-affiliated polling firm based in Raleigh, North Carolina. PPP was founded in 2001 by businessman and Democratic pollster Dean Debnam, the firm's current president and chief executive officer...
survey found that 55% of Connecticut voters thought that same-sex marriage should be legal, while 32% thought it should be illegal and 13% were not sure. A separate question on the same survey found that 81% of respondents supported legal recognition of same-sex couples, with 47% supporting same-sex marriage, 34% supporting civil unions, 16% opposing all legal recognition and 3% not sure.
See also
- LGBT rights in ConnecticutLGBT rights in ConnecticutThe establishment of LGBT rights in the U.S. state of Connecticut is a recent phenomenon, with most advances in LGBT rights taking place in the 21st century...
- Same-sex marriage in the United StatesSame-sex marriage in the United StatesThe federal government does not recognize same-sex marriage in the United States, but such marriages are recognized by some individual states. The lack of federal recognition was codified in 1996 by the Defense of Marriage Act, before Massachusetts became the first state to grant marriage licenses...
- Same-sex marriage in New EnglandSame-sex marriage in New EnglandSame-sex marriage is legal or has been legalized in four of the six New England states: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, and New Hampshire. The New England region has been noted for being the nucleus of the same-sex marriage movement in the United States, with the region having among the most...
- Same-sex marriage legislation in the United StatesSame-sex marriage legislation in the United StatesIn response to court action in a number of states, the United States federal government and a number of state legislatures passed or attempted to pass legislation either prohibiting or allowing same-sex marriage or other types of same-sex unions.-Federal level:...
- Same-sex marriage law in the United States by state
- Public opinion of same-sex marriage in the United States
- Same-sex marriage status in the United States by stateSame-sex marriage status in the United States by stateSame-sex unions have been on the political radar in the United States since the Hawaii Supreme Court ruled in 1993 that denying licenses to same-sex partners violated the Hawaii constitution unless there is a "compelling state interest." Since Massachusetts became the first state to legalize...
- Rights and responsibilities of marriages in the United StatesRights and responsibilities of marriages in the United StatesAccording to the United States Government Accountability Office , there are 1,138 statutory provisions in which marital status is a factor in determining benefits, rights, and privileges...
- History of civil marriage in the United States