Amendment 43 proposes adding a new section to Article II of the Colorado Constitution that defines marriage in Colorado as only a union between one man and one woman.

Recognized marriages in Colorado would be:

1. only between a man and a woman
2. licensed, solemnized, and registered according to pre-established procedures
3. common law marriages only with a man and a woman who live together and hold themselves out publicly as husband and wife

Current State Marriage Benefits

Benefits of marriage in Colorado include, as of November 2006:

• collecting benefits such as pensions, life insurance, and workers' compensation without being designated as a beneficiary
• jointly incurring and being held liable for debts
• making medical treatment decisions for each other
• protection from discrimination based on marital status in areas such as employment and housing
• filing income taxes jointly
• ending a marriage and distributing property through a legal process

Support

Groups in favor of Amendment 43 feel that the proposed amendment:

• preserves the commonly accepted definition of marriage
• preserves the historical definition of marriage consisting of one man and one woman
• provides an optimal environment for creating, nurturing, and protecting children and preserving families

Creating an amendment is seen as necessary to avoid court rulings that would expand the definition of marriage to same-sex marriages.

Opposition

Groups opposed to Amendment 43 feel that the amendment:

• does not belong in the Colorado's Bill of Rights, which has more to do with individual rights
• may be unconstitutional because it discriminates against same-sex couples by denying them the same rights as heterosexual couples
• redundant, since there is already:
  • a statutory ban against non-heterosexual marriages
  • federal statutes that define marriage as between one man and one woman for federal laws

History of Related Amendments in Colorado

Colorado Amendment 2

• legislative vote of a 53.4% margin on amendment on Nov 3, 1992 resulted in the temporary adoption of Amendment 2 with the following text:

Neither the state of Colorado, through any of its branches or departments, nor any of its agencies, political subdivisions, municipalities or school districts, shall enact, adopt or enforce any statute, regulation, ordinance or policy whereby homosexual, lesbian or bisexual orientation, conduct, practices or relationships shall constitute or otherwise be the basis of, or entitle any person or class of persons to have or claim any minority status, quota preferences, protected status or claim of discrimination. This Section of the Constitution shall be in all respects self-executing.

• overturn of Amendment 2 legislation was approved in 1996 through the Romer v. Evans
  Romer v. Evans
  Romer v. Evans, 517 U.S. 620 , is a landmark United States Supreme Court case dealing with civil rights and state laws. It was the first Supreme Court case to deal with LGBT rights since Bowers v...
  
   case by the U.S. Supreme Court stating:

An amendment to the Colorado Constitution that allows discrimination against homosexuals and prevents the state from protecting them violated equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment, because it was not rationally related to a legitimate state interest, but instead was motivated by animus towards homosexuals. Supreme Court of Colorado affirmed.

• U.S. Supreme Court judges presiding over the overturn of Amendment 2:

Chief Justice: William Rehnquist

William Rehnquist

William Hubbs Rehnquist was an American lawyer, jurist, and political figure who served as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States and later as the 16th Chief Justice of the United States...

Associate Justices: John Paul Stevens

John Paul Stevens

John Paul Stevens served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from December 19, 1975 until his retirement on June 29, 2010. At the time of his retirement, he was the oldest member of the Court and the third-longest serving justice in the Court's history...

, Sandra Day O'Connor

Sandra Day O'Connor

Sandra Day O'Connor is an American jurist who was the first female member of the Supreme Court of the United States. She served as an Associate Justice from 1981 until her retirement from the Court in 2006. O'Connor was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1981...

, Antonin Scalia

Antonin Scalia

Antonin Gregory Scalia is an American jurist who serves as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. As the longest-serving justice on the Court, Scalia is the Senior Associate Justice...

, Anthony Kennedy

Anthony Kennedy

Anthony McLeod Kennedy is an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Since the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, Kennedy has often been the swing vote on many of the Court's politically charged 5–4 decisions...

, David Souter

David Souter

David Hackett Souter is a former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He served from 1990 until his retirement on June 29, 2009. Appointed by President George H. W. Bush to fill the seat vacated by William J...

, Clarence Thomas

Clarence Thomas

Clarence Thomas is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Succeeding Thurgood Marshall, Thomas is the second African American to serve on the Court....

, Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Ruth Joan Bader Ginsburg is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Ginsburg was appointed by President Bill Clinton and took the oath of office on August 10, 1993. She is the second female justice and the first Jewish female justice.She is generally viewed as belonging to...

, Stephen Breyer

Stephen Breyer

Stephen Gerald Breyer is an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1994, and known for his pragmatic approach to constitutional law, Breyer is generally associated with the more liberal side of the Court....

See also

• Marriage
  Marriage
  Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
  
  
• Romer v. Evans
  Romer v. Evans
  Romer v. Evans, 517 U.S. 620 , is a landmark United States Supreme Court case dealing with civil rights and state laws. It was the first Supreme Court case to deal with LGBT rights since Bowers v...
  
  
• Civil union
  Civil union
  A civil union, also referred to as a civil partnership, is a legally recognized form of partnership similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples rights,...
  
  
• List of Colorado ballot measures

External links

• Colorado Blue Book Proposed Amendment 43
• Mapping the Moral Compass - http://www.noon43.blogsource.com
• Say No to 43 Campaign website - http://www.theultimatediversion.com
• New Family Facts - http://newfamilyfacts.blogsource.com
• The Money Behind the 2006 Marriage Amendments -- National Institute on Money in State Politics

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