UPDATED: Rhode Island Will Become 10th State To Pass Gay Marriage
Last edited Thu May 2, 2013, 06:03 PM - Edit history (1)
Source: AP/TPM
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Rhode Island is joining nine other states and the District of Columbia in allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry.
Gov. Lincoln Chafee (CHAY’-fee) plans to sign gay marriage legislation into law Thursday following a final procedural vote in the state’s General Assembly.
Hundreds are expected to gather at the Statehouse to celebrate the new law, which has already passed the House and Senate once.
The other five New England states already have gay marriage, but bills that would have changed marriage laws in heavily Catholic Rhode sputtered for nearly 20 years until this year. More gay marriage supporters were elected to the legislature last fall, and advocates mounted an aggressive lobbying campaign to pressure undecided lawmakers.
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Rhode Island Lawmakers Pass Marriage Equality Bill
PEMA LEVY 5:41 PM EDT, THURSDAY MAY 2, 2013
Rhode Island lawmakers approved a final version of a bill to legalize same-sex marriage Thursday and Gov. Lincoln Chafee (I) plans to sign it as early as Thursday evening, the Associated Press reported.
This will make Rhode Island the 10th state plus the District of Columbia, and the last state in New England, to legalize gay marriage. The bill will take effect on Aug. 1.
The House voted to legalize same-sex marriage in January followed by the Senate in April. But due to changes made to the bill in the Senate, the House had to vote a second time on Thursday, giving the legislation final passage by a vote of 56-15.
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http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/rhode-island-lawmakers-pass-marriage-equality-bill
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40 to go! Let's do it! 
