Kaine Co-Sponsors Legislation To Repeal Defense Of Marriage Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, along with U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and 40 of their Senate colleagues, have introduced the Respect for Marriage Act, which would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in the new 114th Congress and provide equal treatment for all married couples.
Kaine had co-sponsored the original version of the Respect for Marriage Act when it was introduced in the 113th Congress following the Supreme Court’s ruling in United States v. Windsor, which eliminated parts of DOMA.
An advocate for numerous LGBT issues in the Senate, Kaine has co-sponsored the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), encouraged the recognition of same-sex marriages at the federal level, and applauded the legalization of same-sex marriage in Virginia. As Governor, Kaine campaigned against the amendment to the Virginia constitution that banned any legal recognition of same-sex relationships and signed an executive order to ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.