Wyo. Marriage Equality Ban Stalls

A bill being considered in the Wyoming house of representatives was stripped Tuesday of language that would ban same-sex marriage and civil unions for state residents, the Casper Star-Tribune reports.

After stalling in committee, a legislative conference committee decided with a 4-2 vote that the bill would address only the state government's recognition of marriages and civil unions from other states and countries. The bill will move on to the full house, and then, if passed, it will go to the senate.

Supporters of House Bill 74 say it's necessary to close up a legal loophole. A lesbian couple who married in Canada attempted to divorce each other, prompting a Wyoming court to rule against them. They have appealed to the Wyoming supreme court. The original bill was stripped of language that would have allowed court access (like divorce proceedings) to same-sex married couples and provisions to ban civil unions as well as marriage.