You did it.
The hard work of all of you who called, wrote or emailed their legislators, who talked to friends, family and coworkers, who wrote to their newspaper or talked about equality in church.... all the work for equality finally got it done. Montana's law criminalizing gay sex is soon to be a thing of the past.
Senate Bill 107 has to get Gov. Steve Bullock's signature, but that's going to happen. What wasn't a given was its passage in the Montana House of Representatives. But thankfully it passed overwhelmingly there today on third reading, with a vote of 65-35.
It's hard to believe that it almost didn't happen. After passing in the Senate, the bill was tabled by the House Judiciary Committee. But on Monday it was resurrected in the House on a blast motion with 60 yes votes. It picked up four more yes votes on second reading Tuesday before passing today.
Testimony on Tuesday ranged from the sublime (Rep. Duane Ankeny's (R-Colstrip) moving tribute to his daughter to the incomprehensible (Rep. Dave Hagstrom's "What is the purpose of sex?" speech comparing sex to the functions of a pen... what?).
It's hard to believe that it took 16 years for this to happen. That's how long ago the Montana Supreme Court ruled that the law SB 107 does away with is unconstitutional in the case Gryczan v. State.
About time.
