AFA of PA Action Alert: Ask Your State Rep to Support Marriage Amendment

 

Issue
Pennsylvania’s Marriage Protection Amendment

Details
Last week Rhode Island became the tenth state to legalize so-called same-sex “marriage.”  Yesterday, Delaware became the eleventh. Also, yesterday here in Pennsylvania, Representative Daryl Metcalfe introduced HB 1349  , a Marriage Protection Amendment.  The process to amend the PA Constitution is longer than many states.  A bill with the exact same language to the proposed constitutional amendment must be passed in two consecutive legislative sessions, then a voter referendum with that language is placed on the ballot and the voters decide whether they want to add that amendment to the PA Constitution.

HB 1349 is a strong two-part amendment which would not only define marriage as between one man and one woman, but forbid the Commonwealth of PA from legally recognizing any relationship that is substantially equivalent to marriage.  As noted in our news release,  one need only look to Colorado which passed a weak one part amendment simply defining marriage as between one man and one woman in 2006.  As of May 1st, civil unions are legal in that state!

If approved by the voters the PA Constitution would be amended with the following language:
“Marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman as husband and wife and no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized.”

Action Steps
Go to our ACTION CENTER to contact your State Representative and ask him or her to support HB 1349.

Dangerous Bill Introduced in the Pennsylvania State Senate

Senator Andrew Dinniman has introduced SB 32 which would require a school district to report to the county Children & Youth Services any children who are homeschooled or in a cyber school.  Children & Youth Services, in turn, would be required to do a risk assessment in the home of all these children.  This is being introduced as a means to protect children from abusive situations, but in reality it is just another way for the government to intrude into the lives of parents who do not want their children in public school.  So . . . will Children and Youth be looking into whether the parents own a gun, whether there are “too many” kids in the home, will the government require each child have their own bedroom??  Just what will the nosy government agency be looking for?

Click here to read his co-sponsor memo.    “This legislation would require a school district to notify the county Children and Youth Agency when a child is enrolled in a home-schooled or cyber-school program.  The County Agency would then be required to do a risk assessment to determine whether or not a risk of child abuse exists.”

This bill treats all home-school and cyber school parents as potential child abusers.

Action Steps

Go to our Action Center to contact your State Senator and ask him or her not to support SB 32.