Multnomah County in Oregon will license gay nuptials

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County will license gay nuptials

Multnomah County is the first in Oregon to allow same-sex marriage, joining an intense national debate

03/03/2004
LAURA GUNDERSON and DAVID AUSTIN

Multnomah County will begin granting marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples today, making it the first jurisdiction in Oregon to officially recognize that same-sex couples can marry.

With a supportive legal opinion from the county attorney, Multnomah County Board Chairwoman Diane Linn will order employees in the licensing office to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples this morning.

The move comes after County Commissioners Lisa Naito and Serena Cruz requested a legal opinion from County Attorney Agnes Sowle, who said that not granting licenses is a violation of the Oregon Constitution.

"It's a matter of civil rights," Naito said. "As soon as we got a strong written opinion, we felt then that we couldn't deny people their basic civil rights. I do think we'll receive criticism, but from how I see it, it doesn't matter. We're really required to do this under the constitution."

Cruz said the county has not only a legal obligation but also a moral one. "I see no reason why gays and lesbians shouldn't have the same access to the same rights, responsibilities and privileges that my husband and I do."

The decision is the result of closed-door meetings involving Naito, Cruz, Linn and Commissioner Maria Rojo de Steffey and representatives of Basic Rights Oregon, a gay-rights group. The group first contacted the four commissioners in late January, asking that the county take steps to acknowledge gay and lesbian couples as married couples.

Left out of the discussions was Commissioner Lonnie Roberts, who represents east Multnomah County and is opposed to gay marriage. Roberts assailed the plan, saying that his fellow board members "made a clandestine decision. That's not something that's healthy for government."

The decision launches Multnomah County into the heart of a national debate about same-sex marriage. The county's decision comes a month after the Massachusetts Supreme Court said that state would have to allow gay marriages and San Francisco's decision to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples. Several cities have followed San Francisco's lead.

At the same time, President Bush has declared his support for amending the U.S. Constitution to prohibit gay marriage, although a timeline has yet to emerge.

Oregon is one of 10 states without a law banning same-sex marriage.

Sowle's opinion states that the county is violating the Oregon Constitution if it doesn't grant licenses to same-sex couples.

Under Oregon law, Sowle wrote, marriage is defined as a civil contract between "males at least 17 years of age and females at least 17 years of age."

"The definition does not state specifically that the contract may only be entered into between partners of the opposite sex," Sowle wrote. "It merely identifies the qualifications of those who may enter the marriage contract. . . . Refusal to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples denies them the privileges and immunities granted to heterosexual couples."

Years of debate in state

Debate about gay rights has been raging in Oregon for nearly two decades, including several highly divisive initiative elections. In 1998, gay-rights advocates in the state won a significant legal victory in the Tanner v. Oregon Health Sciences University decision.

In that decision, the court said private employers could not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation when hiring. The landmark ruling placed sexual orientation in the same protected class as race, gender and religion in the workplace.

The state Court of Appeals ruled that the Oregon Constitution requires the government to extend health benefits to the partners of gay employees.

In a footnote, the court said it was not ruling on the constitutionality of Oregon's marriage law, which defines marriage "in terms of a civil contract entered into by males and females who are thereby joined together as husband and wife."

Legal experts have long suspected that a challenge to Oregon's marriage law under the Tanner precedent could succeed.

Sowle asked Charles F. Hinkle, a prominent constitutional lawyer who has been active on gay-rights issues, to review her decision about two weeks ago. Hinkle said he concurred with her opinion.

Discussions questioned

Under the county's charter, decisions by the five-member board require a majority vote for approval. Board members can't meet with three or more members without giving public notice.

Cruz said the board didn't violate state public meeting laws. "We never had a meeting with three of us in a room," she said.

The county chairwoman can make an administrative decision in her role as chief executive. Linn will use that authority to instruct county employees to begin issuing the licenses today.

One Multnomah County official said the four board members wanted to keep their discussions secret.

"They were keeping it pretty close and were afraid of some kind of pre-emptive injunction," the official said.

After making the decision, officials alerted the county sheriff's office to have deputies at the county's Southeast Portland headquarters for security this morning.

Basic Rights was e-mailing supporters Tuesday night, trying to get as many couples as possible to show up on the first day the licenses will be issued. Roey Thorpe, the group's executive director, said she expects hundreds of couples to come to the county offices this morning.

"This is about the government recognizing gay and lesbian couples who live in Oregon, who contribute to the community, who pay taxes and are a part of the fabric of Oregon," she said. "For the first time in Oregon history, under law, gay couples are not seen as strangers."

Cruz said the issue was bound to hit the county at some point.

"Multnomah County -- like other communities across the state -- has been asking the question of whether or not this is something we can do," she said. "Personally, I support gay marriage."

Not available for comment

On Tuesday, Linn was traveling to Oregon from Washington, D.C., and couldn't be reached for comment. Her staff declined to discuss the policy change.

Rojo de Steffey did not return repeated phone calls Tuesday.

Roberts said he found out about the decision Tuesday from a local radio station.

"I feel somewhat betrayed," Roberts said Tuesday night. "I have tried to work with every one of those people. I thought we had a good working relationship.

"Clandestine decisions are not a good thing. That's what they did. I'm really upset by all this."

Roberts said he opposes gay marriages and thinks state government should decide the issue. He said he would "obviously be outvoted on the board, but I still think we should've had a discussion.

"We've called marriage something that's between a man and a woman for centuries, and we should keep it that way," he said. "Apparently, the ladies on the board had another idea."

Residents divided on subject

Local residents reacted to the news with mixed opinions Tuesday night. Some said they supported the decision, saying gay people deserve the same right to health care benefits, inheritances and other amenities that traditional couples enjoy.

"As someone who's married, I don't think that the institution is threatened by allowing same-sex people in," said Angie Marsh, 28, of Portland. "It doesn't affect my marriage. It's no less valid. Maybe they can lower the divorce rate."

Some said they understood how a gay couple could desire a recognized union but still held reservations they couldn't entirely articulate.

"I'm not sure the state should completely sanction it," said Al Ingman, a 73-year-old resident playing pool at the River City Saloon in downtown Portland. "I hesitate to think they should have the same union that men and women have, but if I was queer, that's the way I'd want it."

Others remained steadfast against it, predicting the county's move would launch a petition drive for a state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.

"I'm not a religious person," said Clint Lenard, 61, a Southeast Portland resident. "But I don't believe that's what the man upstairs meant for us to do."

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More on the Portland, Oregon story here. TV reports at "outside the county office" and so on.