Wyoming House Kills Anti–G/L Marriage Bill

CHEYENNE, Wyoming (Observer Update) - Wyoming's house of representatives voted down a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would have defined marriage between a man and a woman as the only legal union recognized in the state.

A two-thirds majority was needed to pass the resolution and move it to the senate, but 35 out of 60 representatives voted against the measure, named House Joint Resolution 17, advocate.com reported.

Wyoming law already prohibits marriage by same-sex couples, but House Joint Resolution 17 would have written that law into the state's constitution, making the decision significantly more permanent and difficult to reverse. Representatives Cathy Connolly, Pat Childers, and Roy Cohee were among the 35 representatives who rejected the proposed amendment.

On receiving news that the amendment had been voted down, Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign stated in a release, "We are grateful that the Wyoming house of representatives stood up for equality and refused to write discrimination into the state constitution."