The Washington D.C. city council has overwhelmingly approved a bill that recognizes gay marriages performed in other states, a vote could have far wider implications beyond the District of Columbia.
Amid growing momentum from states approving gay marriage, the federal government will have the chance to debate the issue because of a rule that charges Congress with approving the laws of the District of Columbia.
The bill, which was approved by a 12-1 vote after an emotional debate, must first be signed by Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, a step that is considered a formality since he has already said he supports the measure. Then the committees in the House and Senate that oversee the District of Columbia will have 30 session days to review the law.
To overturn it, the House and Senate would have to send a joint resolution to President Obama for his signature. If Congress chooses not to take action within those 30 days, however, the law would automatically go into effect.
“We’re very excited about today — we’ll worry about tomorrow’s battle tomorrow,” David Catania, the council’s first openly gay member when he was elected in 1997, said in a telephone interview. “This is the culmination of a long journey as we attempt to be true to our motto — ‘Justice for All.’”
Catania added that the council had sent a powerful message, “that marriage equality will be the law of this land, it’s only a matter of time.”
Read the rest of this report in the New York Times.
