Just Four Votes Needed For An Override
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Tonight, the Vermont Senate finalized and voted on the gay marriage bill that has passed by a huge majority in both houses. The bill, S-115, which would make gay marriage legal in Vermont, will be vetoed by Republican Governor Jim Douglas as soon as it hits his desk tonight. In preparation for the promised veto, Vermont lawmakers have been working non-stop to round up enough votes to override the governor’s veto.
Required is a two-thirds majority, or, 100 of the 150 votes in the House, to make Vermont one of four states that allow same-sex marriage. The vote in the Senate was 26-4, and in the House on Friday, 96-52. Four additional “yes” votes are needed for the override vote, which is already scheduled for 9:00 Tuesday morning.
There were few minor changes tonight, including changing wording from “promoting civil marriage and equality” to “recognizing civil marriage and equality”. Additionally, civic organizations are enabled to decline requests for use, e.g., the Knights of Columbus can decline a request by a gay couple to rent their facilities.
Come back here tomorrow at 9:00 AM for results of the planned override vote.
In the meantime, remember how a bill becomes a law?…