Sacramento, Calif., Jul 31, 2008 / 23:40 pm
Supporters of a California amendment that would define marriage as being between a man and a woman have said they will file a lawsuit challenging California attorney general Jerry Brown’s decision to rewrite the wording of the measure, arguing the new phrasing is “inherently argumentative” and “inflammatory.”
The original wording says the amendment, called Proposition 8, “amends the California Constitution to provide that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.”
Last week Brown’s office changed the proposition’s title from “Limit on Marriage Constitutional Amendment” to “Eliminates Right of Same-sex Couples to Marry,” the California Catholic Daily reports.
The proposition’s summary now reads “Changes California Constitution to eliminate right of same-sex couples to marry. Provides that only a marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” The summary says the initiative could lead to “revenue loss, mainly sales taxes, totaling in the several tens of millions of dollars, to state and local governments,” but also indicates there would likely be little impact state and local governments’ fiscal budgets.