By Katherine Dean
An amendment proposing to ban gay marriage by invalidating the Iowa Supreme Court’s unanimous 2009 decision, which gave gays and lesbians full marriage equality, was introduced Wednesday in the Iowa House of Representatives, according to the Iowa Independent. The amendment would add language to Iowa’s constitution to define legal marriage as the union of one man and one woman.
Sponsors of the amendment, known as House Joint Resolution 6, also seek to ban all legal recognition of same-sex relationships, including civil unions and domestic partnerships.
Sponsoring the bill are 56 of the 60 Republicans who comprise Iowa’s house majority. None of the 40 House Democrats have signed on as sponsors to the bill. If Resolution 6 passes the Iowa House, it heads to the Senate, where Democrats still hold a 26-24 majority.