Supporters of a bill to rule out Tennessee from the US Supreme Court's gay marriage ruling attended a rally at the state Capitol in Nashville. Moreover, the Tennessee lawmaker whose bill would bar the state from following the US Supreme Court's gay marriage claimed that he is unworried by the loss of $8.5 billion in federal funds if the Legislature acts out the measure.
The Tennessee lawmaker who first introduced a bill asking to bar the state from following the Supreme Court's gay marriage ruling just stated that he is unworried by a projected loss of $8.5 billion in federal funds if the Legislature passes out the measure, as claimed by Times Free Press.
The Legislative analysts estimated that if the state declines services to the same-sex couples, Tennessee stands to lose $6.5 billion in federal Medicaid money and another $2 billion in food stamp and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds.
According ABC News, State Rep. Mark Pody stated at a rally at the state capitol that the proposal he has tagged as the "Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act" is worth any cost and the Lebanon Republican is in doubt of the estimated loss of federal funds.
Yahoo! News also reported that Pody even cited in the state constitution that defined marriage as something just between a man and a woman. He also declared that any judicial interpretation opposing to "shall be void and unenforceable in Tennessee."
The amendment overtook with more than 80 percent of the vote a decade ago."We're only upholding what we've already voted on," Pody stated. He also added, "They trampled our constitution."
For now, the proposal is set to be scheduled for its initial hearing in a House subcommittee on Wednesday afternoon. The State Rep. then urged all supporters to contact the five members of the panel so they could convince them not to remove the bill.
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