Hackney tries to kill proposed amendment to ban gay marriage

RALEIGH (AP) — A proposed constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage in North Carolina has been kicked to the curb Tuesday by Speaker Joe Hackney.

But it's unclear if the House leader's parliamentary maneuver will keep it there.

The bill seeks to emboss in the state constitution that marriage is the "union of one man and one woman at one time." But Hackney and Senate leader Marc Basnight believe the amendment is unnecessary because that definition is already part of state law.

The bill flipped from a committee to full House and back to a committee, where Hackney hopes it will expire with tomorrow's so-called crossover deadline.

But a spokesman says even Hackney isn't sure if the bill is subject to crossover rules.