“Support”
By Jonathan Taylor, PCDCC Legislative Committee Analyst, MLS Drexel Law
ACA 5 (Assembly Constitutional Amendment 5) Marriage Equality
ACA 5 passed the California State Senate on July 13, 2023 and it was chaptered and filed the same month. Now it must pass the popular vote, as it will be on the November 5, 2024, General Election Ballot. This will remove discrimination from the state constitution.
The bill will repeal the invalid but still existing language of Proposition 8 (2008). While the California District Court & the United States Supreme Court have ruled that marriage restrictions and bans are unconstitutional it is still necessary to remove this harmful, hateful and dangerous language from the state constitution.
This bill repeals the harmful language of Article I Sec. 7.5 of California State Constitution, removing ‘marriage is between a man and a woman’ and replacing it with ‘marriage is between two individuals.’
Despite the judicial precedents, it is necessary to continue removal of this language and lobby for civil rights protections because there are no specific civil rights enumerated or protecting the rights of LGBT Americans in federal laws. While religion is recognized in every form of law, the rights of LGBT persons are not recognized in any federal law. Despite this, new religious refusal rights are enacted every year.
With the Dobbs v. Jackson case, SCOTUS is debating the power of precedent, putting the rights of millions of Americans at risk. Under the current language in the state constitution, if the courts make subsequent opposing judicial rulings, Proposition 8 will automatically be law again, stripping life, liberty & happiness away from millions of Californians. Currently there are no other marriage rights for LGBT Californians in the state Constitution.
Judicial opinions that overturned Roe v. Wade last year have specifically targeted the current rulings supporting LGBT marriage equality despite the difference between the marriage equality rulings and Roe v. Wade. The rulings in Obergefell vs. Hodges and other marriage equality cases state that an LGBT person has the right to marry under the 14th Amendment equal protection clause of the Constitution. Roe v. Wade and related cases recognized an individual’s right to privacy that included bodily autonomy, but not specifically a right to abortion.
The Placer County Democratic Party Central Committee has officially endorsed ACA 5.
We must now campaign to encourage voter turn-out in the next General Election to ensure passage of ACA 5, Marriage Equality ‘Assembly Constitutional Amendment 5’ on November 7, 2023.
Additional Supporters:
ACLU California Action (co-sponsor)
Equality California (co-sponsor)
National Center for Lesbian Rights (co-sponsor)
Office of Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis (co-sponsor)
Anti-Defamation League
California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO
County of Los Angeles Board of Supervisor
League of Women Voters of California
Los Angeles County Democratic Party