Same-sex marriage in Connecticut

Same-sex marriage has been legally recognized in Connecticut since November 12, 2008 as a result of the Connecticut Supreme Court 4-3 ruling in Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health that the state's statutory prohibition on same-sex marriage violated the Constitution of Connecticut and that the state's civil unions failed to provide same-sex couples with rights and privileges equivalent to those of marriage.^[1]

Connecticut was the third U.S. state to have a state supreme court decision to legalize same-sex marriage, but the decision, which was originally scheduled to go into effect on October 28, 2008, was delayed till November 12, 2008 in order to allow state agencies and local officials time to update procedures and prepare for issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

By the date of November 12, 2008, California had, a week prior, amended its constitution to ban same-sex marriage, but prior marriages were still recognized. This, in effect, meant that by the date of November 12, 2008 when same-sex marriage was legalized in Connecticut, it was the second U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage after neighboring Massachusetts. In 2009, the Connecticut General Assembly repealed the statutory prohibition on same-sex marriage, and in October 2010 it ended the ability to enter into civil unions.

Civil unions

The state enacted a civil union law in 2005 that provided same-sex couples with the same rights and responsibilities under state law as marriage, while also explicitly defining marriage as between "one man and one woman". Connecticut became the second state in the United States, following Vermont, to adopt civil unions, and the first to do so without judicial intervention. The bill was passed by the House of Representatives on April 13 in an 85–63 vote and by the Senate on April 20 in a 26–8 vote. Governor Jodi Rell signed the bill into law later the same day, and it went into effect on October 1, 2005.^[2]

Prior to the passage of the civil union legislation, Connecticut had recognized same-sex relationships solely for the purpose of providing benefits to the same-sex partners of state employees.^[3]

Following the Supreme Court of Connecticut's October 2008 ruling which found that civil unions failed to provide same-sex couples with the rights and responsibilities of marriage, civil unions ceased to be performed and all existing unions were automatically transformed into marriages on October 1, 2010.^{[4][5][6][7][8]} Same-sex marriages, civil unions and domestic partnerships from other jurisdictions are now legally treated as marriages in Connecticut.^[4]

Same-sex marriage

Statute

On April 11, 1991, the House of Representatives passed legislation prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation in housing, employment and credit, along with a provision prohibiting "the recognition of the right of marriage between persons of the same sex". The Senate passed the bill on April 17. On May 1, 1991, Governor Lowell Weicker signed it into law, and it went into effect on October 1, 1991.^[9] On April 29, 2000, the House adopted legislation 96–51 stating that the "current public policy of the state of Connecticut is now limited to a marriage between a man and a woman", along with a provision stating that nothing "in this act shall be construed to establish or constitute an endorsement of any public policy with respect to marriage". The Senate approved the bill on May 3, 2000 by a vote of 31 to 5. It was signed into law by Governor John G. Rowland on June 1, and went into effect on October 1, 2000.^[10][11] On April 13, 2005, addressing concerns raised by Governor Jodi Rell, the House passed an amendment to the civil union bill, by 80 votes to 67, defining marriage as "the union of one man and one woman". The civil union bill was later passed in the Senate and signed into law by Governor Rell.^{[12][13][14][15]}

On January 31, 2007, State Senator Andrew J. McDonald and State Representative Michael Lawlor, co-chairpersons of the Judiciary Committee, announced the introduction of a bill that would give same-sex couples full marriage rights in the state of Connecticut. The bill, HB 7395,^[16] passed the Judiciary Committee by a vote of 27–15 on April 12, 2007. Governor Rell said she would veto any same-sex marriage legislation.^[17] The bill was never submitted to the full House or Senate prior to the adjournment of the 2007 legislative session.

On April 22, 2009, Connecticut legislators, both in the House (by a 100–44 vote) and in the Senate (by a 28–7 vote), agreed to replace all statutory references to marriage with gender-neutral language. Governor Rell, a Republican, signed the law on April 23. The definition of marriage in Connecticut is now the following:^[18]

Marriage means the legal union of two persons. [CT Gen Stat § 46b-20]

Lawsuits

Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health

Main article: Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health

In August 2004, Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) representing eight same-sex couples from Connecticut filed a lawsuit in state court, challenging what they described as the state's discriminatory exclusion of same-sex couples from the right to marry. The couples, seven of whom had been denied marriage licenses in Madison, sued the Connecticut Department of Public Health and the Madison registrar of vital statistics, Dorothy Dean. They argued that this discrimination violated the equality and liberty provisions of the Constitution of Connecticut and were supported by the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union. The case was opposed by the Family Institute of Connecticut, which was denied intervenor status in the case.

On July 12, 2006, Superior Court Judge Jonathan Silbert ruled against the plaintiffs, finding that:

"Civil union and marriage in Connecticut now share the same benefits, protections and responsibilities under law. ... The Connecticut Constitution requires that there be equal protection and due process of law, not that there be equivalent nomenclature for such protection and process."

The judge concluded that denying same-sex couples the right to marry did not violate the Connecticut Constitution.^[19] The Supreme Court of Connecticut heard an appeal by the plaintiffs in Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health on May 14, 2007. On October 10, 2008, the court released an opinion guaranteeing marriage rights to same-sex couples.^[20][21] The court ruled 4–3 that denying same-sex couples the right to marry violated the equality and liberty provisions of the Constitution of Connecticut.^[21] The court also held that it would be unconstitutional to relegate same-sex couples to a status less than full marriage by enacting legislation treating same-sex unions as civil unions rather than marriage:

"Despite the truly laudable effort of the legislature in equalizing the legal rights afforded same sex and opposite sex couples, there is no doubt that civil unions enjoy a lesser status in our society than marriage. We therefore conclude that the plaintiffs have alleged a constitutionally cognizable injury, that is, the denial of the right to marry a same sex partner."

On November 12, 2008, the first marriage licenses were issued to same-sex couples in Connecticut. Among the first couples to obtain marriage licenses were plaintiffs in the Kerrigan case, Robin and Barbara Levine-Ritterman in New Haven, and Elizabeth Kerrigan and Joanne Mock-Kerrigan in West Hartford.^[22][23] The court decision made Connecticut the third U.S. state to recognize same-sex marriage, but by the time the first same-sex marriages were solemnized in Connecticut, California voters had approved a same-sex marriage ban by referendum. Governor Rell reacted to the ruling by issuing the statement: "The Supreme Court has spoken. I do not believe their voice reflects the majority of the people of Connecticut. However, I am also firmly convinced that attempts to reverse this decision - either legislatively or by amending the state Constitution - will not meet with success." State Senator Donald E. Williams Jr. called it a "civil rights victory".^[24]

Before the court issued its decision, a coalition of groups that included such opponents of same-sex marriage as the state's Roman Catholic bishops and the Family Institute of Connecticut supported a November referendum on a proposal to convene a constitutional convention.^[25][26] On November 4, 2008, voters opposed calling a constitution convention by a 2 to 1 margin.^[27][28]

Mueller v. Tepler

On July 16, 2014, the Connecticut Supreme Court, reversing judgments in lower courts, ruled unanimously that a same-sex couple in a relationship established before the state afforded legal recognition to their relationship has the same rights as other married couples. In the case of Mueller v. Tepler, it allowed a woman to pursue a medical practice claim for the loss of income and companionship based on the care her female partner received between 2001 and 2004.^[29]

Native American nations

Same-sex marriage has been legal on the reservation of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe since April 29, 2010. The Tribal Code states that "two persons may be joined in marriage" provided the parties are of marriageable age and meet all the legal requirements to marry. Marriages entered into outside the tribe's jurisdiction are valid if they are valid in the jurisdiction where they were entered into. Marriages performed under native Pequot custom, known as wuhsintamuwôk (pronounced [wʌhsɪntəmʌˈwɔ̃ːk]), are also recognized on the reservation.^[30]

While there are no records of same-sex marriages as understood from a Western perspective being performed in Native American cultures, there is evidence for identities and behaviours that may be placed on the LGBT spectrum. Many of these cultures recognized two-spirit individuals who were born male but wore women's clothing and performed everyday household work and artistic handiwork which were regarded as belonging to the feminine sphere. This two-spirit status allowed for marriages between two biological males to be performed in some of these tribes.^[31] In the Mohegan-Pequot language, two-spirit individuals are known as nis mucuhcôqak (pronounced [nɪs mʌtʃʌhˈtʃɔ̃ːkʷək]).^[32]

Demographics and marriage statistics

Data from the 2000 U.S. census showed that 7,386 same-sex couples were living in Connecticut. By 2005, this had increased to 10,174 couples, likely attributed to same-sex couples' growing willingness to disclose their partnerships on government surveys. Same-sex couples lived in all counties of the state, and constituted 1.1% of coupled households and 0.6% of all households in the state. Most couples lived in Hartford, Fairfield and New Haven counties, but the counties with the highest percentage of same-sex couples were Litchfield (0.60% of all county households) and Hartford (0.59%). Same-sex partners in Connecticut were on average younger than opposite-sex partners, and more likely to be employed. In addition, the median household income of same-sex couples was higher than different-sex couples, but same-sex couples were far less likely to own a home than opposite-sex partners. 19% of same-sex couples in Connecticut were raising children under the age of 18, with an estimated 3,140 children living in households headed by same-sex couples in 2005.^[33]

From 2009 to 2021, 13,766 same-sex marriages were performed in the state of Connecticut:^[34] 543 in 2008, 2,706 in 2009, 1,791 in 2010, 1,262 in 2011, 668 in 2012, 1,356 in 2013, 1,057 in 2014, 689 in 2015, 704 in 2016, 672 in 2017, 639 in 2018, 617 in 2019, 549 in 2020, and 513 in 2021.^[35] The Connecticut Department of Public Health has collected data on the county of occurrence of same-sex marriages since 2016:^[36]

Year	Fairfield	Hartford	Litchfield	Middlesex	New Haven	New London	Tolland	Windham	Total
2016	145	174	41	32	181	88	19	24	704
2017	142	161	46	34	183	71	16	19	672
2018	140	141	35	43	167	65	26	22	639
2019	149	154	22	39	169	55	14	15	617
2020	155	133	28	21	132	50	15	15	549
2021	126	110	26	37	129	58	14	13	513

The 2020 U.S. census showed that there were 7,760 married same-sex couple households (3,432 male couples and 4,328 female couples) and 4,881 unmarried same-sex couple households in Connecticut.^[37]

Public opinion

Public opinion for same-sex marriage in Connecticut

Poll source	Dates administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Support	Opposition	Do not know / refused
Public Religion Research Institute	March 9 – December 7, 2023	242 adults	± 0.82%^1	80%	14%	6%
Public Religion Research Institute	March 11 – December 14, 2022	?	?	81%	18%	1%
Public Religion Research Institute	March 8 – November 9, 2021	?	?	77%	21%	2%
Public Religion Research Institute	April 5 – December 23, 2017	659 adults	?	73%	20%	7%
Public Religion Research Institute	May 18, 2016 – January 10, 2017	1,073 adults	?	70%	20%	10%
Public Religion Research Institute	April 29, 2015 – January 7, 2016	872 adults	?	70%	24%	6%
Public Religion Research Institute	April 2, 2014 – January 4, 2015	565 adults	?	67%	26%	7%
New York Times/CBS News/YouGov	September 20 – October 1, 2014	1,284 likely voters	± 3.3%	61%	26%	13%
Public Policy Polling	July 26–29, 2012	771 voters	± 3.5%	55%	33%	12%
Public Policy Polling	September 22–25, 2011	592 voters	± 4.0%	55%	32%	13%
Quinnipiac University Polling Institute	March 29 – April 4, 2005	1,541 registered voters	± 2.5%	42%	53%	5%
Quinnipiac University Polling Institute	May 26 – June 1, 2004	1,350 registered voters	± 2.7%	45%	50%	5%
University of Connecticut	March 25–29, 2004	606 residents	± 4.0%	49%	46%	5%
Quinnipiac University Polling Institute	October 1–7, 2003	1,519 voters	± 2.5%	44%	50%	6%

Notes:

• ¹ The margin of error for the national survey was ± 0.82 percentage points at the 95% level of confidence, including the design effect for the survey of 1.56.

See also

• LGBT rights in Connecticut
• Same-sex marriage in the United States
• Same-sex marriage legislation in the United States
• Same-sex marriage law in the United States by state
• Public opinion of same-sex marriage in the United States
• Same-sex marriage status in the United States by state
• Rights and responsibilities of marriages in the United States
• History of civil marriage in the United States

References

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34. How many same-sex marriages in the U.S.? At least 71,165, probably more
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