Alabama Bill Would Put An End To State-Issued Marriage Licenses

** ADVANCE FOR SUNDAY JAN. 15 ** Representatives Greg Albritton, R-Excel, left, and Gerald Allen, R-Cottondale. confer on the floor of the house, Thursday Jan. 12, 2006, at the Capitol in Montgomery , Ala. Republica... ** ADVANCE FOR SUNDAY JAN. 15 ** Representatives Greg Albritton, R-Excel, left, and Gerald Allen, R-Cottondale. confer on the floor of the house, Thursday Jan. 12, 2006, at the Capitol in Montgomery , Ala. Republican legislatures now have enough votes in the House to prevent any bill they don't like from coming up for a vote. (AP Photo/Rob Carr) MORE LESS

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama House committee has approved a bill that would replace state-signed marriage licenses with contracts in a bid to free probate judges from signing licenses for gay couples.

The House Judiciary committee voted Wednesday for the bill, which passed the Senate in March.

Republican Sen. Greg Albritton’s bill would require couples to file a form to record their marriages.

Following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that effectively legalized same-sex marriage, some probate judges in the state refused to issue marriage licenses altogether rather than give them to gay couples.

Albritton says the bill brings Alabama law into compliance with the Supreme Court ruling. Current law states judges “may” issue licenses, while Albritton’s bill says judges “shall” record the marriage contracts.

A similar bill failed last year.

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP image: Sen. Greg Albritton (left)

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  1. Albritton says the bill brings Alabama law into compliance with the
    Supreme Court ruling. Current law states judges “may” issue licenses,
    while Albritton’s bill says judges “shall” record the marriage
    contracts.

    That’s the meat of the matter. That headline was rather misleading.

  2. A little noted amendment dictates men will remain standing and women will be seated when urinating. Just as Jesus would want it.

  3. I always thought that a marriage license was exactly that a contract, else why does one need another contract to dissolve a marriage.

  4. New Alabama state department of tourism motto: “Alabama: fighting the glorious lost cause in the name of hate since 1861.”

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