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"Defense Of Marriage Act" 5/96 H.R. 3396 Summary/Analysis

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Congress of the United States
House of Representatives

SUMMARY AND ANALYSIS

DEFENSE OF MARRIAGE ACT
AS INTRODUCED ON MAY 7, 1996

BY REPS. BOB BARR (GA), STEVE LARGENT (OK), JIM SENSENBRENNER (WI), SUE 
MYRICK (NC), ED BRYANT (TN), BILL EMERSON (MO), HAROLD VOLKMER (MO), IKE 
SKELTON (MO)

The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) does two things.  First, it provides 
that no State shall be required to give effect to a law of any other 
State with respect to a same-sex "marriage."  Second, it defines the 
words "marriage" and "spouse" for purposes of Federal law.

The first substantive section of the bill is an exercise of Congress' 
power under the "Effect" clause of Article IV, section 1 of the 
Constitution (the Full Faith and Credit Clause) to allow each State (or 
other political jurisdiction) to decide for itself whether it wants to 
grant legal status to same-sex "marriage."  This provision is necessary 
in light of the possibility of Hawaii giving sanction to same-sex 
"marriage" under its state law, as interpreted by its state courts, and 
other states being placed in the position of having to give "full faith 
and credit" to Hawaii's interpretation of what constitutes "marriage."  
Although so-called "conflicts of law" principles do not necessarily 
compel such a result, approximately 30 states of the union are 
sufficiently alarmed by such a prospect to have initiated legislative 
efforts to defend themselves against any compulsion to acknowledge same-
sex "marriage."

This is a problem most properly resolved by invoking Congress' authority 
under the Constitution to declare what "effect" one State's acts, 
records, and judicial proceedings shall have in another State.  Congress 
has invoked this authority recently on two other occasions; in the 
Parental Kidnaping Prevention Act of 1980, which required each State to 
enforce child custody determinations made by the home State if made 
consistently with the provisions of the Act; and in the Full Faith and 
Credit for child Support Order Act of 1994, which required each State to 
enforce child support orders made by the child's State if made 
consistently with the provisions of the Act.

The second substantive section of the bill amends the U.S. Code to make 
explicit what has been understood under federal law for over 200 years; 
that a marriage is the legal union of a man and a woman as husband and 
wife, and a spouse is a husband or wife of the opposite sex.  The DOMA 
definition of marriage is derived most immediately from a Washington 
state case from 1974, Singer v. Hara, which is included in the 1990 
edition of Black's Law Dictionary.  More than a century ago, the U.S. 
Supreme Court spoke of the "union for life of one man and one woman in 
the holy estate of matrimony."  Murphy v. Ramsey, 114 U.S. 15, 45 
(1985).

DOMA is not meant to affect the definition of "spouse" (which under the 
Social Security law, for example, runs to dozens of lines).  It ensures 
that whatever definition of "spouse" may be used in Federal law, the 
word refers only to a person of the opposite sex.
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104th CONGRESS  2D SESSION

H.R. 3396

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Mr. BARR of Georgia (for himself, Mr. LARGENT, Mr. SENSENBRENNER, Ms. 
MYRICK, Mr. VOLKMER, Mr. SKELTON, Mr. BRYANT, and Mr. EMERSON) 
introduced the following bill, which was referred to the Committee 
on_____________

A BILL

To define and protect the institution of marriage.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the "Defense of Marriage Act".

SEC. 2. POWERS RESERVED TO THE STATES.

(a) IN GENERAL. -- Chapter 115 of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended by adding after section 1738B the following:

Section 1738C. Certain acts, records, and proceedings and the effect 
thereof

"No State, territory, or possession of the United States, or Indian 
tribe, shall be required to give effect to any public act, record, or 
judicial proceeding of any other State, territory, possession, or tribe 
respecting a relationship between persons of the same sex that is 
treated as a marriage under the laws of such other State, territory, 
possession, or tribe, or a right or claim arising from such 
relationship."

(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT. -- The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 115 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to section 1738B the following new item: "1738C. 
Certain acts, records, and proceedings and the effect thereof."

SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF MARRIAGE.

(a) IN GENERAL. -- Chapter 1 of title 1, United States Code, is amended 
by adding at the end the following:

"Section 7.  Definition of 'marriage' and 'spouse'

"In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, 
regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and 
agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal 
union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 
'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or 
a wife."

(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT. -- The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 1 of title 1, United States Code, is amended by inserting after 
the item relating to section 6 the following new item:

"7. Definition of 'marriage' and 'spouse'."

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