Reply #1: Calif. Senate Passes Gay Marriage Bill

[davidinalameda]

http://www.365gay.com/newscon05/09/090105calSenate.htm

The California Senate on Thursday became the first elected state body in the country to pass legislation to allow same-sex couples to marry.
Called the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act, the bill would require local clerks to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples but allow people opposed to gay marriage to refuse to conduct weddings.

The measure passed 21 to 15 - a majority larger than marriage advocates had expected.

another link

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-090105gays_wr,0,1012820.story?coll=la-tot-promo&track=morenews

Handing gay rights advocates a major victory, the California Senate approved legislation Thursday that would legalize same-sex marriages in the nation's most populous state.

The 21-15 vote made the Senate the first legislative chamber in the country to approve a gay marriage bill. It sets the stage for a showdown in the state Assembly, which narrowly rejected a gay marriage bill in June.

"Equality is equality, period," said one of the bill's supporters, Sen. Liz Figueroa, D-Sunol. "When I leave this Legislature I want to be able to tell my grandchildren I stood up for dignity and rights for all.'