NEWS

House panel kills 'natural marriage' bill

Stacey Barchenger, and Joel Ebert
The Tennessean

A bill that would have directed state officials to disobey the U.S. Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage died in its first appearance before the legislature on Wednesday.

But the vote does not mean the issue will disappear. Already other bills and lawsuits have been announced that seek to challenge the ruling from the nation's highest court.

The House Civil Justice subcommittee members heard about 90 minutes of testimony on Wednesday from pastors and lawyers and former legislators — much of it surrounding religious grounds and issues of states' rights to nullify a Supreme Court decision — before it killed the Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act.

Rep. Mike Carter, R-Ooltewah, said he did not support the Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act as the right way to correct what he called overreaching by the court.

"You’re asking us to step out where no one has stepped before," he said, adding that the bill to nullify the decision by the nation's highest court should be the last resort.

Religion often intersects with Tennessee politics

He said the court did not interpret law but created it, a concern expressed by the dissenting Supreme Court justices themselves. Carter is a former judge in Hamilton County.

"I think that there are real constitutional questions about this decision and where it leaves Tennessee today," he said after the hearing. "Is there a marriage statute in Tennessee?

"It is my personal opinion that there is no way to be legally married in Tennessee today."

Rep. Sherry Jones, D-Nashville, said she didn’t believe the bill would advance in the legislature, in part given the potential cost. The bill could have prompted the federal government to cut more than $8.5 billion in funding to Tennessee programs, according to the legislature's analysis.

“When the Supreme Court sends down a ruling, that’s what we do,” Jones said. “Trying to go through our committee system to change that is not going to work.”

The bill's first and only vote drew a full crowd to the committee room, with as many as 75 people spilling into the hall to watch on a television. Representatives of the Tennessee Equality Project and the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee attended, as did dozens of others, some carrying Bibles and others wearing stickers saying "I support HB 1412."

They cheered or scoffed occasionally, and later gathered to sing and pray over Rep. Mark Pody, who sponsored the bill. They vowed their fight for God's definition of marriage as one man and one woman would continue.

Pody, R-Lebanon, said none of their efforts — nor his own — were in vain. "Praise Him, worship Him and follow Him," he told the crowd.

The Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act sought to treat the Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell vs. Hodges as void and called on the attorney general to defend any state official who refused to comply. Read the full text of the bill here.

Tennessee for the most part swiftly fell in line with the precedent set in June when the nation's highest court ruled 5-4 that same-sex couples could marry. Most county clerks said they would begin issuing licenses to same-sex couples the same day.

But there were lingering challenges on the county level, and the death of the bill on Wednesday does not mean challenges at the General Assembly or in Tennessee courts are done.

'Natural marriage' bill could cost Tennessee $8 billion

Pody and Sen. Mae Beavers, R-Mt. Juliet, on Tuesday filed another bill that could be a backup plan. That would prohibit Tennessee and local governments from enforcing executive actions and U.S. Supreme Court rulings until the General Assembly approves them.

David Fowler of the conservative Family Action Council of Tennessee scheduled a press conference for Thursday morning to announce a lawsuit that would challenge how the case applies to marriage laws.

Fowler spoke against the bill, saying it was unenforceable and merely an effort of legislators to look like they were doing something.

He declined to comment on the lawsuit, but posed a question: If courts rule a law invalid, do they also get to choose which law is right, or is that something only a legislature can do?

Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the ACLU of Tennessee, sat in the front row as legislators killed the natural marriage bill.

"The Supreme Court decision was about ensuring equal protection,” she explained, adding that it does not influence the religious beliefs of those who supported Pody's bill. Weinberg said she doesn’t think the issue will vanish anytime soon.

“I anticipate it will be here for quite some time,” she said.

Staff writer Joel Ebert contributed to this story. Reach Stacey Barchenger at 615-726-8968 or on Twitter @sbarchenger.