Marriage Equality Bill Heads To Biden’s Desk Following Bipartisan House Vote

Jennifer Shutt, Pennsylvania Capital-Star

The U.S. House overwhelmingly approved a marriage equality bill Thursday that would ensure same-sex and interracial couples continue holding many of the rights they have now, should the U.S. Supreme Court overturn the cases that established those constitutional protections.

The measure now heads to the desk of President Joe Biden, who plans to sign it.

The 258-169-1 vote included the backing of 39 Republicans, though many GOP lawmakers argued during debate there was no reason to pass the legislation since the justices have not agreed to take up any cases that would end legal marriages for interracial or same-sex couples.

Democrats countered the legislation is essential to assure Americans that should the conservative-leaning court take up such a case in the future, as it did with abortion rights, same-sex and interracial marriages will still be recognized federally.

They also said religious liberty protections added in the Senate should assuage concerns about potential impacts on people and organizations.

“I’m standing here today because in the year 2022, families like mine are once again concerned that an activist out-of-step Supreme Court is going to take those rights away,” Minnesota Democratic Rep. Angie Craig said during floor debate.

Wisconsin Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan argued that his marriage to his husband, Phil, shouldn’t be any different from any other marriages when it comes to taxes, visiting a spouse in the hospital, Social Security benefits, or retirement.

Pocan urged his colleagues, including Republicans, to back the bill, saying “it’s never too late to do the right thing.”

He later added that he was sure “no one here would intend to discriminate against me and my spouse, as I would never against you and yours.”

Pennsylvania Reaction

In a statement issued after the vote, U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, D-7th District, said a “right is not a right unless it is equally exercised by all.

“We cannot allow families who depend on the rights and privileges secured by the guarantee of marriage equality to wonder if one day they will wake up in a nation that no longer recognizes their marriage, as many have since Justice Clarence Thomas called for the court to reconsider the Obergefell decision,” Wild continued. “Now, they will not have to worry.”

On Twitter, U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-6th District, said she was an “enthusiastic yes vote,” for “my daughter, her wife, and all members of the LGBTQ community.”

A Supreme debate

Virginia GOP Rep. Bob Good spoke out against the U.S. House passing the bill, saying the legislation did not comply with his religious views on marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

Good argued the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges case that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide was incorrect, saying the justices were “overriding the will of the people and their elected representatives.”

Repeal of Defense of Marriage Act

The bill approved Thursday by the U.S. House would repeal the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act that had defined marriage as between one man and one woman. The law also allowed states to ignore legal same-sex marriages that were performed in states where the unions were legal.

The current measure would ensure that if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the cases that legalized same-sex and interracial marriages, the federal government would continue recognizing those unions. It would also require states to recognize legal same-sex or interracial marriages between two people performed out-of-state.

The U.S. House voted 267-157 in July to approve the original version of the bill with 47 GOP lawmakers supporting the measure.

A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators — Tammy Baldwin, a Wisconsin Democrat; Susan Collins, a Maine Republican; Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican; Kyrsten Sinema, an Arizona Democrat; and Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican — then began working behind the scenes to add religious liberty protections into the bill and to get the backing of at least 10 Republicans to clear that chamber’s legislative filibuster.

After a few months of negotiations, senators voted 61-36 in late November to send the measure back to the House for final approval.

Following Senate passage of the bill, Biden said in a written statement that “the United States is on the brink of reaffirming a fundamental truth: love is love, and Americans should have the right to marry the person they love.”

“For millions of Americans, this legislation will safeguard the rights and protections to which LGBTQI+ and interracial couples and their children are entitled,” Biden wrote. “It will also ensure that, for generations to follow, LGBTQI+ youth will grow up knowing that they, too, can lead full, happy lives and build families of their own.”

Pennsylvania enacts regulatory change

In Pennsylvania, where a federal court in 2014 overturned a state law banning same-sex marriage, Gov. Tom Wolf praised the formal approval of new regulatory change formalizing nondiscrimination protection for LGBTQ people.

“I have been clear – hate has no place in Pennsylvania,” Wolf said in a statement. “This includes protecting the rights of individuals facing discrimination by a school, landlord, or employer based on who they love or their gender identity. Today’s approval by the commonwealth’s Independent Regulatory Review Commission is another important step to ensure all Pennsylvanians can live with dignity and freedom.”

Wolf, who leaves office in January, signed an executive order last year that adds sexual orientation and gender identity or expression as protected classes under the commonwealth’s sexual harassment policies.

The final form regulation approved Thursday “provides individuals with protections from discrimination under the PA Human Relations Act and the PA Fair Education Opportunities Act. Following today’s approval, the new regulatory change is effective immediately,” the administration said in a statement. Pennsylvania is one 21 states without a law on the books banning discrimination against LGBTQ residents.

Pennsylvania Capital-Star is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Pennsylvania Capital-Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor John Micek for questions: info@penncapital-star.com. Follow Pennsylvania Capital-Star on Facebook and Twitter.

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