Sen. Long sends marriage amendment to rules committee

Indiana Senate President Pro Tem David Long announced Thursday morning that House Joint Resolution 3 – which seeks to amend Indiana’s Constitution to ban gay marriage – will be heard by the Rules and Legislative Procedure Committee.

It was expected that the resolution would be assigned to the Judiciary Committee, but Long said he is sending it to the rules committee because of its size and because it includes many committee chairs. Long chairs the rules committee. The resolution is expected to be heard the week of Feb. 10. Long said he’d prefer the resolution not be amended in committee, but he wouldn’t block any amendments on the floor.

The resolution was amended in the House to remove the second sentence, which stated “A legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals shall not be valid or recognized.” As a result of concerns over this sentence, a companion bill was introduced, House Bill 1153, outlining the legislative intent of the amendment. HB 1153 is on second reading in the House, but on Thursday, author Rep. Eric Turner, R-Cicero, passed on bringing the bill to the floor for discussion.