Civil Unions

Act 91
Vermont Civil Union Review Commission
The Vermont Guide to Civil Unions (Sec. of State)
Vermonters for Civil Unions
Gay-Civil-Unions.com-VT
Take it to the People

"We hold that the State is constitutionally required to extend to same-sex couples the common benefits and protections that flow from marriage under Vermont law. Whether this ultimately takes the form of inclusion within the marriage laws themselves or a parallel "domestic partnership" system or some equivalent statutory alternative, rests with the Legislature."

Vermont Supreme Court ruling in Baker vs. Vermont, December 20, 1999

On April 25, 2000, without fanfare, Gov. Dean signed H.0847 into law, making Vermont the only state to legalize civil unions. The law went into effect July 1. Civil unions were a major issue in the 2000 elections, as "Take Back Vermont" signs sprouted over the state. Supporters of civil unions responded, "How far do you want to take Vermont back?" and mobilized under the banner "Take Vermont Forward." National pro-family groups weighed in against civil unions as did Reform Party presidential candidate Pat Buchanan during a visit to the state. Legislators were targeted because of their support for civil unions, and in November 2000 Democrats lost control of the House of Representatives for the first time in over a decade.