Text of AZ HCM 2005 (2005)

House Engrossed State of Arizona House of Representatives Forty-seventh Legislature First Regular Session 2005 HOUSE CONCURRENT MEMORIAL 2005 A CONCURRENT memorial urging the CONGRESS OF the United States to propose an AMENDMENT to the constitution of the United States to acknowledge marriage as between one man and one woman. (TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE) To the Congress of the United States of America: Your memorialist respectfully represents: Whereas, the union of man and woman in marriage has been recognized as the foundation of society since the beginning of time; and Whereas, marriage between one man and one woman substantially and undeniably benefits the individuals involved, any children resulting from the union and society at large; and Whereas, the founders of our country decreed marriage between a man and a woman to be "the highest and most blessed of relationships"; and Whereas, nearly three-fourths of the states already have enacted laws to define marriage as being only between a man and a woman and the federal government enacted the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996; and Whereas, seventeen states have adopted amendments to their constitutions to protect the definition of marriage as being only between a man and a woman; and Whereas, the people of the State of Arizona view with growing concern attempts to change the definition of marriage through judicial action, including, most recently, rulings by the courts in Canada, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the State of Washington; and Whereas, in addition to simply stating that marriage in the United States consists of the union of a male and a female, an amendment to the Constitution of the United States ensures the democratic process by allowing the states to establish their own policy in the area of martial benefits, including privileges associated with marriage. Wherefore your memorialist, the House of Representatives of the State of Arizona, the Senate concurring, prays: 1. That, pursuant to article V of the Constitution of the United States, the Congress of the United States propose an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, to be ratified by the legislatures or by conventions in three-fourths of the several states, stating that marriage in the United States shall consist only of the union of a man and a woman. 2. That the Secretary of State of the State of Arizona transmit a copy of this Memorial to the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives and each Member of Congress from the State of Arizona. PASSED BY THE HOUSE FEBRUARY 21, 2005. PASSED BY THE SENATE APRIL 12, 2005. FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE APRIL 13, 2005.