Steven's statement on Senate passage of domestic partnership bill

March 10, 2009

OLYMPIA…Sen. Val Stevens, R-Arlington, issued this statement after the Senate passed Senate Bill 5688, which would expand domestic partnerships to include 180 additional rights now reserved for married couples.  

If passed, the bill would confer all the rights of marriage to domestic partners – “marriage” in everything but name. 

“Put simply, under this bill domestic partnership equals marriage. The bill clearly states more than 100 times ‘the terms spouse, marriage, marital, husband, wife, widow, widower, next of kin and family shall be interpreted as applying equally to state registered domestic partnerships.'

“Since 1974 homosexual activists have worked to get homosexual marriage put into law. Well, here it is – in all but name. The people of Washington, however, do not want homosexual marriage. They made that clear in 1998 through the passage, by me and their other elected representatives, of the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage in our state as the union of one man and one woman. In 2006 the Washington State Supreme Court upheld the Legislature’s right to ban same sex marriages.   

“But with the passage of this bill domestic partnerships become equal to marriage in every practical way. Make no mistake. This vote has essentially passed the overturning of DOMA.”

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Sen. Stevens represents the 39th Legislative District,
which includes part of rural King, Snohomish, Skagit and Whatcom counties.

For more information contact Pat Albright
at (360) 786-7519 or albright.pat@leg.wa.gov^.