Vermont Senator
to Introduce Marriage Bill

Vermont state senator John Campbell said Tuesday he will introduce a bill to legalize gay marriage when the legislature returns in January, the Associated Press reports.

Gay and lesbian couples have had civil union rights in Vermont since 2000. A commission of legislative leaders formed in April to discuss whether the state should allow same-sex couples to marry. Though the panel concluded that instituting same-sex marriage would be positive for the state, it stopped short of suggesting that the state grant same-sex marriage. Recommending gay marriage "would undercut the purpose and usefulness of [the commission's] work and [the] report," the April 21 report said.

Campbell, the senate majority leader, said that the bill wouldn't likely go far unless it were supported by Gov. Jim Douglas, a Republican. Douglas recently beat out Democratic challenger Gaye Symington to retain his position. (Michelle Garcia, The Advocate)