Governor Anibal Acevedo Vila said on Jan 23 that he would not interfere with a potential referendum to ban same-sex marriage in Puerto Rico. The proposed constitutional amendment, known as Resolution 99, has already passed the Senate, and would need a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives before it could be presented to voters in the U.S. island territory in May.
Despite his disinclination to fight any referendum, Acevedo has previously stated that he believes the measure would be unnecessary because local laws already prohibit same-sex marriage.
Resolution 99 proposes to amend the Puerto Rican constitution to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman. If passed, it would make it more difficult to permit civil unions in the future, or to provide any kind of marriage-like protections for unmarried couples.
