Yesterday, March 2, the legislature approved two resolutions in support of the right of same sex couples to marry. They were HR 5, approved by the Assembly 45 to 27, and SR 7, approved by the Senate 18 to 14. Neither bill needs to be approved by the other house and neither have to be signed by the Governor.
Each bill was in the form of a resolution urging the state Supreme Court to overturn Proposition 8, the proposition that amended Californias constitution to ban the recognition of same sex marriages. The Legislature approved HR 5 and SR 7 with unusual speed. Clearly they wanted the resolutions approved prior to the Supreme Court hearing on Proposition 8 which is scheduled for March 5.
The bills were approved on straight party lines. All the yes votes were from Democrats. All the no votes came from Republicans.
To see which Assembly Members voted for or against HR 5 click
To see which Senators voted for or against SR 7 click
If you want to know how your Senator and Assembly Member voted, but dont know who they are, click on "Who Represents Me" on the left side of this web page.
You will also find instructions on how to listen to and see the Supreme Court hearing lower down on this page.
How To See Prop 8 Supreme Court Hearing On The Web
The California Supreme Court will hold a hearing on whether or not to overturn Proposition 8. The hearing will be on Thursday March 5, and it will start at 9:00 AM. Proposition 8 is an initiative, approved by the voters of California, which amended Californias constitution to ban same sex marriage.
You can listen to the hearing by visiting the site for CalChannel at 9:00AM on March 5. To do this, direct your browser to: . Then click on the link for the hearing under the words "Live Webcast." Note: if the hearing has not actually begun when you sign in, you might get a picture with no sound for a while.
The people at CalChannel tell us that their site might be over-whelmed by the number of people trying to listen to the court hearing. This may prevent you from seeing and hearing the broadcast at the above site.
There is an alternative. CNN will probably be broadcasting the court hearing as well. To hear and see the hearing, through the internet, on CNN, direct your browser to: Then click on the link for the court hearing, on the left side of the resulting page, under the words "Happening Now."
Boyce Hinman
California Communities United Institute
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