By Allison Perrine
NEW JERSEY – The state took a crucial step forward for the LGBTQ+ community last week when the governor signed legislation that codified marriage equality laws with gender-neutral language, officials have announced.
Under recently approved Senate Bill No. 3416, state law concerning marriage and civil union will be read with gender-neutral intent. The goal is to bring New Jersey statutory law into conformance with a U.S. Supreme Court decision that required states to allow same-sex couples to marry, according to the governor’s office. This latest measure will allow same-sex marriage to continue in New Jersey even if existing state and federal court precedents were to be overturned.
“Despite the progress we have made as a country, there is still much work to be done to protect the LGBTQ+ community from intolerance and injustice. New Jersey is stronger and fairer when every member of our LGBTQ+ family is valued and given equal protection under the law,” said Gov. Phil Murphy in a press release issued Jan. 10. “I am honored to sign legislation that represents our New Jersey values and codifies marriage equality into state law.”
Same-sex couples have been able to marry in New Jersey since Oct. 18, 2013. Just days following that decision, Oct. 21, Red Bank Councilman Ed Zipprich and his partner JP Nicolaides were the first same-sex couple to officially say “I do” in Red Bank. This week, Zipprich told The Two River Times he and his partner were both “pleased” with the recent legislation but shared disappointment in some state legislators who voted against it, including former Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso. Assemblyman Gerry Scharfenberger also voted against the bill.
“The codification of same-sex marriage is an important step toward full equality under the law. JP and I are grateful to the team at Garden State Equality for standing firm on this issue and to those in the state legislature who value all marriages and all families, no matter what they look like,” Zipprich wrote to The Two River Times this week. “While I have lobbied for LGBTQ+ rights over the years, I and so many other members of the gay community are appreciative of Governor Murphy’s willingness to sign the legislation into law. Couples who are legally married in New Jersey should never have to worry that an act of legislation would be able to nullify their loving unions.”
Nicolaides added that they “can only hope that other states will follow the example set by our legislators and Governor.”
According to Senate Bill No. 3416, which was introduced Feb. 9, 2021, the amendment to state law was “necessary” because in New Jersey, same-sex couples’ right to marry was never codified. Until recently, the language was geared toward cisgender individuals, meaning those whose gender identity matches their sex assigned at birth. What used to read “sister or brother” in the text now reads “sibling,” for example, and “daughter or son” now reads “the child.”
“Basic equal rights should not be denied to any class of citizen, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation,” said Sen. Vin Gopal (D-11) in the release, who was one of several sponsors who worked on the bill. “The law must protect all civil rights and continue to honor the union between two people who love each other. We need to make these rights more secure by writing them into law.”
Gopal later told The Two River Times that the bill got bipartisan approval which he said exemplifies the progress that has been made as a society and “how more accepting people are as a whole.
“I think we had 35 votes, a majority Republican vote, which wouldn’t have been the case 10 years ago,” Gopal added. The state Senate has 40 members; 35 voted in favor of the bill, four voted against it and one abstained. There are currently 24 Democrats and 16 Republicans in the Senate. Sen. Declan O’Scanlon (R- 13) voted for the bill.
Highlands Mayor Carolyn Broullon, a member of the LGBTQ+ community, called the legislation “an important step forward for the community.”
“With the mixed messages coming out of Washington D.C., this bill provides reassurances for those who have chosen to marry or join in a civil union. Knowing your rights are protected is deeply satisfying,” she told The Two River Times. “As for the gender-neutral language, it is yet another step in leveling the playing field.”
This article originally appeared in the Jan. 20-26, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.
