Changes Sought In State Law After Marriage Ruling
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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/NSF) - With the U.S. Supreme Court ensuring that same-sex marriage is legal, a House Democrat has filed a bill to revamp part of Florida law that sets requirements for issuing marriage licenses.
The bill, filed by Rep. Alan Williams, would eliminate one part of law that in the past required a marriage license to only be issued if "one party is a male and the other party is a female."
The bill also would repeal a legal definition of marriage that has been used in interpreting state laws and rules. That definition says marriage "means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the term 'spouse' applies only to a member of such a union."
The bill, which will be considered during the 2016 legislative session, would change state law to reflect court rulings during the past year.
Same-sex couples began getting married in Florida in January after a federal judge said the state's ban on gay marriage was unconstitutional. The U.S. Supreme Court followed in June by issuing a landmark decision that said same-sex couples across the country have a fundamental right to marry.
The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.