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SB89 (registry of mutual‑benefit contracts) fails after debate over scope and relationship to Amendment 3
Summary
After a floor amendment clarifying that mutual‑benefit contracts "do not have the same or substantially equivalent legal effect as a marriage," Senate Bill 89 failed final passage 10–18; sponsors argued the bill grants limited rights while opponents said existing legal instruments already provide protections and worried the bill could be read as equivalent to marriage.
Senate Bill 89, which would have created specified rights tied to filings of mutual‑benefit contracts, failed final passage on the Senate floor after extended debate and a roll‑call vote.
Floor members adopted a Senate floor amendment that inserted language saying "nothing in this chapter... may be construed to give a contract the same or substantially equivalent legal effect as a marriage," and the amendment also limited rights to those expressly selected by the parties in the contract. The amendment passed by voice vote.
Sponsor Senator Bell told colleagues the bill was narrowly tailored to grant specific rights — hospital visiting, disposition of remains, organ donation, certain consent decisions, and a presumption of joint tenancy for property acquired during the relationship — to persons over 18 who cannot be legally married to each other. Bell said the bill "does not mention same... marriage" and argued it did not derogate from Amendment 3, which he described as part of the state constitution.
Opponents pressed that many of the protections SB89 would create can already be obtained by powers of attorney, trusts, joint tenancy and other instruments, and expressed concern about creating forms that could generate unrealistic expectations. Senator Hickman read Amendment 3 on the floor and said that he believes the statute could give substantially equivalent legal effect; others raised questions about whether a registry maintained by the Department of Health would be the appropriate repository and whether such filings would be recognized in other states.
On the roll call, the clerk recorded 10 yes, 18 nay, 1 absent; the bill failed and was filed. "Senate bill 89 have received 10 yes votes, 18 nay votes with 1 being absence, fails to pass" (clerk).
