Indiana: State Senate approves amended marriage equality ban

The Indiana state Senate just approved HJR-3 which would send a referendum to voters for approval of a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.

Lawmakers in the GOP-controlled chamber voted 32-17 on House Joint Resolution 3, which the body advanced to a final reading last week even though it was stripped of language banning civil unions and other similar arrangements by the state’s House — disqualifying the ban from appearing on this November’s ballot.

A referendum on a constitutional change requires passage of the bill with the exact same language in consecutive General Assemblies.

Because a line was removed from the version passed last year,  the clock restarts and must the bill must be passed in 2015 or 2016 before it could go to voters in the 2016 election.

By that point in time, the Supreme Court may have already ruled on the issue.  OR, with the polls showing shifting attitudes towards marriage equality, the bill may have no chance at all with voters in Indiana.