VIRGINIA - The Virginia Senate has passed a marriage equality bill aimed at cementing same-sex marriage in the Commonwealth, sending it on to Governor Youngkin’s final consideration.
HB 174, previously passed in the House, would require that any couples seeking a marriage license in Virginia be given one regardless of sex, gender, or race. The bill contains an exception for clergy members acting within their religious capacity. The Virginia Senate passed the bill on a vote of 21-18 today, February 19th.
The bill will now proceed to Governor Glenn Youngkin’s desk for either his signature or veto.
“Until we can pass a constitutional amendment protecting equal marriage, this bill is an important step in guaranteeing that every couple has the right to marry,” said LaTwyla Mathias, Executive Director of Progress Virginia. “The government shouldn’t be in the business of telling us who we can and cannot marry. Basic marriage rights shouldn’t be left up to the discretion of individual clerks of court, and we applaud the Senate for passing this necessary legislation. We’ll be watching to make sure that Governor Glenn Youngkin signs this bill into law when it makes it to his desk.”
In 2006, a referendum in Virginia limited marriage to one man and one woman. The 2015 Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, however, superseded that referendum and legalized same-sex marriage in the Commonwealth.
If the Supreme Court were to overturn that decision, as they did with federal abortion protections under Roe v. Wade in 2023, the issue of same-sex marriage would default to Virginia law. Should Youngkin sign HB 174, the change in Virginia code would add some legal protectionfor same-sex marriage at the state level if federal legalization were to be struck down.