House State Affairs committee introduces memorial asking Supreme Court to revisit Obergefell decision

The House State Affairs Committee on an introductory motion put RS31836, a memorial titled “Defining Marriage,” properly before the committee and voted to introduce it for a full hearing.

Representative Heather Scott, a Republican from District 2A, told the committee the resolution asks the Supreme Court to reconsider its 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges. “In 2015 the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a five-four decision … Obergefell versus Hodges,” Scott said, and the memorial “reaffirm[s] our state authority to regulate marriage.”

Scott framed the measure as a states’-rights and judicial-oversight statement. She told the committee that the memorial’s purpose is to “restore Federalism by calling for this issue to be dealt with in the states, not in our courts.” She also described the Obergefell majority as having, in her view, exceeded the Court’s constitutional authority and disrupted state decisionmaking.

Representative Skog moved to introduce RS31836 for a full hearing; the committee carried the motion by voice vote. The committee made no final policy decision on the subject at this meeting; introduction moves RS31836 to a future, more detailed hearing where members can take testimony and consider amendments.

The committee’s remarks and the motion were limited to introductory action; no vote on the substance of the memorial occurred at this session. The transcript shows the measure was introduced for further consideration and that committee procedure (time limits and amendment authority in introduction hearings) would apply at a future hearing.