Puerto Rico gov. allows referendum against gay marriage - USATODAY.com

Puerto Rico gov. allows referendum against gay marriage - USATODAY.com

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico's governor said Wednesday he would not block a referendum to toughen a ban on same-sex marriage in the U.S. island territory even though he believes the proposed constitutional amendment is unnecessary and divisive.
Gov. Anibal Acevedo Vila told reporters he would sign the bill authorizing a May referendum if the measure gets the required two-thirds majority of votes in the island's House of Representatives. It has already passed in the Senate.
Acevedo was asked about his support after the leaders of an association of 2,300 churches, the Pentecostal Brotherhood, said the governor told them in private that he would sign the bill.
"I told them that the people need more agendas that unite them rather than divide them," Acevedo said. "But I also told them that if they have two-thirds of the legislature, well, I cannot get in the way."
A vote has not yet been scheduled in the Puerto Rico's House of Representatives.
Resolution 99, as the measure is known, would amend the Puerto Rican constitution to establish that marriage is between a man and woman and that no other types of unions could be recognized as a marriage. It would make it harder in the future to allow civil unions or grant marital rights to unmarried couples.
Critics of the proposal, including the governor, argue the amendment is unnecessary because local laws already ban same-sex marriage. Opponents say it is discriminatory.
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