Respect for Marriage Act

Respect for Marriage Act
Great Seal of the United States
Long titleTo repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and ensure respect for State regulation of marriage, and for other purposes.
Acronyms (colloquial)RFMA
Enacted bythe 117th United States Congress
EffectiveDecember 13, 2022
Number of co-sponsors189
Citations
Public lawPub. L. 117–228 (text) (PDF)
Statutes at Large136 Stat. 2305
Codification
Acts repealedDefense of Marriage Act
Titles amended1 U.S.C. General Provisions
28 U.S.C. Judiciary and Judicial Procedure
U.S.C. sections amended1 U.S.C. § 7
28 U.S.C. § 1738C
Legislative history

The Respect for Marriage Act (RFMA; H.R. 8404) is a landmark[1][2][3] United States federal law passed by the 117th United States Congress in 2022 and signed into law by President Joe Biden. It repeals the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), requires the U.S. federal government and all U.S. states and territories (though not tribes) to recognize the validity of same-sex and interracial civil marriages in the United States, and protects religious liberty. Its first version in 2009 was supported by former Republican U.S. Representative Bob Barr, the original sponsor of DOMA, and former President Bill Clinton, who signed DOMA in 1996.[4] Iterations of the proposal were put forth in the 111th, 112th, 113th, 114th, and 117th Congresses.[5]

On June 26, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the Fourteenth Amendment requires all U.S. states to recognize same-sex marriages.[6] This decision rendered the last remaining provision of DOMA unenforceable and essentially made same-sex marriage de facto federal law. The future of same-sex marriage in the United States was put back into question in 2022, when a concurring opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization argued the Court "should reconsider" the Obergefell decision.[7][8][9] RFMA officially repealed DOMA and requires the federal government to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages, codifying parts of Obergefell, the 2013 ruling in United States v. Windsor, and the 1967 ruling in Loving v. Virginia.[10] In addition, it compels all U.S. states and territories to recognize the validity of same-sex and interracial marriages if performed in a jurisdiction where such marriages are legally performed; this extends the recognition of same-sex marriages to American Samoa, the remaining U.S. territory to refuse to perform or recognize same-sex marriages.

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In July 2022, RFMA was reintroduced to Congress, with revisions including protections for interracial marriages.[11] The Act passed the House in a bipartisan vote on July 19, 2022.[12] Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin announced on November 14, 2022, that a bipartisan deal had been struck, and that they expected the legislation to reach 60 votes to break the filibuster.[13] A motion of cloture passed 62–37 in the Senate on November 16.[14] On November 29, the Senate passed it by a 61–36 vote, with a large majority of Senate nays originating from Republican Senators in the Southern United States.[15] On December 8, the House agreed to the Senate amendment by a 258–169 vote, with one member voting present (abstention). 39 Republicans voted yea.[16] President Biden signed the bill into law on December 13, 2022.[17] Public opinion polls of same-sex marriage in the United States indicate a strong majority of Americans are in favor; interracial marriage is supported almost universally.[18][19]

The final version of the bill divided American religious groups morally opposed to same-sex marriage;[20] it was supported by some as a suitable compromise between the rights of LGBTQ couples and religious liberty,[21] a position that was taken by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,[22] but was prominently opposed by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Southern Baptist Convention due to their views on sexual ethics.[20] Religious groups that supported the bill include the Episcopal Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Union for Reform Judaism, the United Church of Christ, the Unitarian-Universalist Association, and the Presbyterian Church (USA).[23][24]

  1. ^ Gambino, Lauren; Smith, David (December 13, 2022). "Biden signs landmark law protecting same-sex and interracial marriages". The Guardian. Archived from the original on October 19, 2023. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  2. ^ Otten, Tori (December 13, 2022). "Biden Signs Landmark Bill Protecting Same-Sex Marriage". The New Republic. Archived from the original on October 19, 2023. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
  3. ^ Rice, Nicholas (December 15, 2022). "Sam Smith Changes "Stay with Me" Lyric During "Historic" Respect for Marriage Act Signing Performance". Yahoo! News. Archived from the original on October 19, 2023.
  4. ^ "The Respect for Marriage Act Garners Support of President Clinton and Former Rep. Bob Barr, DOMA's Original Author" (Press release). United States House of Representatives. September 15, 2009. Archived from the original on July 12, 2011. Retrieved September 16, 2009.
  5. ^ Johnso, Chris (January 6, 2015). "Respect for Marriage Act reintroduced". The Washington Blade. Archived from the original on January 10, 2015. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
  6. ^ Obergefell v. Hodges, 576 U.S. ___, ___ (2015) ("The Court now holds that same-sex couples may exercise the fundamental right to marry.").
  7. ^ Sneed, Tierney (June 24, 2022). "Supreme Court's decision on abortion could open the door to overturn same-sex marriage, contraception and other major rulings". CNN. Archived from the original on June 24, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  8. ^ Gerstein, Josh (June 24, 2022). "Justice Thomas: SCOTUS "should reconsider" contraception, same-sex marriage rulings". Politico. Archived from the original on July 18, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  9. ^ Carlisle, Madeline. "Clarence Thomas Signals Same-Sex Marriage and Contraception Rights at Risk After Overturning Roe v. Wade". Time. Archived from the original on July 17, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  10. ^ Somin, Ilya (July 20, 2022). "Federalism and the Respect for Marriage Act". Reason. Archived from the original on July 23, 2022. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  11. ^ Solender, Andrew (July 18, 2022). "Congress moves to protect marriage equality after Roe decision". Axios. Archived from the original on July 18, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  12. ^ Lai, Stephanie (July 19, 2022). "House Passes Same-Sex Marriage Bill Amid Concern About Court Reversal". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 19, 2022. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
  13. ^ Tyko, Kelly; Solender, Andrew (November 14, 2022). "Senate tees up vote on marriage equality bill". Axios. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
  14. ^ Quarshie, Mabinty; Elbeshbishi, Sarah (November 16, 2022). "Senate defeats filibuster on gay marriage bill, paving path for protecting same sex unions". USA TODAY. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference senate-vote was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ "Roll Call Vote". clerk.house.gov. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  17. ^ Shear, Michael D. (December 13, 2022). "Biden Signs Bill to Protect Same-Sex Marriage Rights". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
  18. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ Cite error: The named reference :4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ a b Crary, David (November 16, 2022). "Faith groups split over bill to protect same-sex marriage". Associated Press. Retrieved November 17, 2022. Among U.S. faith leaders and denominations, there are sharp differences over the bill advancing in the Senate that would protect same-sex and interracial marriages in federal law ... On Tuesday, one of the most prominent conservative-leaning denominations – The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – came out in favor of the legislation. But the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention remain opposed ...
  21. ^ Esbeck, Carl (November 17, 2022). "Everything You Need to Know About the Respect for Marriage Act". Christianity Today. Retrieved November 18, 2022. Rather than just say no to RMA, a small collective of faith groups moved quickly in the Senate to see if the act could be brought into balance. A few senators from both parties who were keen on doing just that helped. After adding in a measure of religious liberty protections, the Senate substitute of the House bill passed the higher chamber earlier this week, 62–37. Churches, Christian colleges, K-12 religious schools, and faith-based social service providers can take comfort in these boundary lines. All in all, RMA is a modest but good day's work. It shows that religious liberty champions and LGBTQ advocates can work together for the common good. It says to the original House bill, 'If a bill is about us, it has to be with us.' And it shows that Congress can still legislate, not just be a gaggle of egos who go to Washington to perform but never fix.
  22. ^ Dias, Elizabeth (November 16, 2022). "Mormon Church Backs Bill Supporting Same-Sex Marriage". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
  23. ^ Brumley, Jeff (December 6, 2022). "BJC leaders say religious liberty fears about Respect for Marriage Act are overdrawn". Baptist News. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  24. ^ "Multifaith Statement of Support" (PDF).