Sen. Joyce Elliott
has filed legislation to clear up an unconstitutional fact of Arkansas law that the Arkansas Supreme Court shamefully dodged pertaining to listing of parents on birth certificates.

Though children born to heterosexual couples are automatically presumed children of the married couple (even in cases of artificial insemination or egg donation) the Supreme Court said that could not be the case for children of same-sex couples. It’s biology, said Justice Jo Hart and a majority of the court went along with her, despite the likelihood that this amounts to unconstitutional discrimination against same-sex married couples under federal court precedent.

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So Elliott would fix it. Presumption of parentage would be given in cases of artificial insemination and surrogacy to the biological mother or father and the married spouse.

Simple. Fair. Done successfully in other states.

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Will it be so easy in Arkansas, given events of recent days with the rash of bill filings aimed at marginalizing, shaming and punishing all manner of people, particularly those of sexual orientation and gender identity viewed outside the legislative mainstream.

Elliott’s bill would mean same-sex married couples wouldn’t have to get a court order for both parents to be on a birth certificate, the same privilege afforded heterosexual couples.

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