What does this bill do? Now, instead of getting a marriage license in a courthouse, a couple must instead have lawyers record a marriage via signed affadavits. Now, all a court has to do is record that a marriage happened.
What is the purpose of the bill? According to the bill’s proponents, it’s because they want “government out of marriage.” In reality, it is an attempt by state lawmakers and judiciary members to find a way to refuse to acknowledge the credibility of same-sex marriage without having to go against federal law. Will this affect the validity of same-sex marriage? No. But some opponents of the bill are afraid that it opens the door for judges to loophole their way into refusing to record marriages based on their religious beliefs. After all, the marriage already happened. It’s just not on the books yet.
In an unforeseen turn of events, the state funding lost from not issuing marriage licenses also stands to take away from domestic violence programs to the tune of $2 million a year. This could mean the closure of state-sponsored battered women shelters like Penelope House in Mobile and Light House in Baldwin County. Though Sen. Albritton has promised an amendment to fix this issue, it hasn’t been presented into House discussions. Given the state of Alabama’s already thinly-stretched budget, it may not happen at all.
Age: 20 School: University of Alabama Major: Journalism/History Hometown: Harvest, AL Favorite writer: Don’t have one. Love them all. Favorite sex scene from a movie/TV/book: …
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