Legal/Policy Updates

Polyamory Begins - At the end of June, Somerville, Massachusetts, became the first city in the U.S. to grant the same legal rights and recognition as marriage (insofar as it can under its jurisdiction) to "polyamorous" domestic partnerships.

Wedding Vendors - A photographer sued on June 30th in attempt to not be forced to serve same-sex "weddings" under new Virginia law. Weeks later, on July 22nd, a minister who owns a wedding officiant business sued Cuyahoga County, Ohio, to challenge whether she would be subject to fines under its public accommodations nondiscrimination ordinance for not performing same-sex ceremonies.

Catholic Teachers - The U.S. Supreme Court provided strong new precedent in favor of Catholic schools' being able to make employment choices without interference from government. While not specifically about marriage or sexuality, the July 8th decision in Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru will be invaluable in protecting Catholic schools who part ways with teachers that publicly contradict the faith by their actions.

Catholic Hospital - A female "transgender man" whose hysterectomy for gender dysphoria was cancelled by St. Joseph Medical Center sued on July 16th.

Adoption Services - On July 21st, the 2d Circuit Court of Appeals in New York saved a Protestant pregnancy center and adoption agency, for now, by overturning a lower court's dismissal of the group's lawsuit to survive state regulations that would force them to work with same-sex couples.

Housing - On July 24th, the U.S. Dept. of Housing & Urban Development released a proposed regulation to provide flexibility to shelters in addressing placements with respect to sex and "gender identity," which had been otherwise potentially subject to a 2016 "gender identity"-based mandate.

In the States - On June 29th, Wisconsin regulators ordered private health insurers to cover "gender confirmation" procedures. In mid-July, Colorado passed a law allowing minors to change their birth certificates. On July 21st, Rhode Island enacted a law to make it easier for a member of a same-sex couple to be a "parent" for various legal purposes. And, taking SOGI to the last frontier, Ketchikan, Alaska (pop. 8,300) unanimously passed an ordinance mandating "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" nondiscrimination on July 16th.

Abroad - Montenegro created same-sex civil partnerships on July 1st; and on July 9th the U.K. announced that Northern Ireland would offer religious same-sex "marriage." Bolivia, Nepal, and Thailand all also took steps toward legalizing same-sex "marriage" or partnerships in July. Russia, on the other hand, passed a slate of constitutional changes on July 1st that included protection for the definition of marriage. And on July 7th an English court ruled that Christian foster care and adoption agencies must place with same-sex couples who self-identify as Christian.