Wisconsin bill would adopt gender-neutral marriage laws

Wisconsin lawmakers took a significant step toward modernizing the state's marriage laws when they passed legislation replacing gendered language with gender-neutral terminology in marriage statutes.[4] The approved amendments, tucked into a nearly 2,000-page budget bill last summer, replaced references like "husband and wife" with "married couple" or "spouse" and created explicit protections for same-sex couples' right to marry.[4]

The changes address outdated language that has lingered in Wisconsin's legal code despite same-sex marriage becoming legal statewide in 2014.[3] Legislators noted the updates were intended to align Wisconsin statutes with the U.S. Supreme Court's 2015 decision in *Obergefell v. Hodges*, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.[4] The most notable addition was a new subsection explicitly protecting same-sex couples' right to marry, filling a gap that existed even after the courts struck down the state's 2006 constitutional ban.[4]

For Milwaukee residents and LGBTQ+ families across Wisconsin, these changes provide important legal clarity and protection. Same-sex couples can now point to explicit statutory language affirming their marriage rights, rather than relying solely on court precedent. The Wisconsin State Legislature also introduced a broader constitutional amendment—Senate Joint Resolution 68—that would remove the defunct 2006 ban entirely from the state constitution, though that process requires voter approval and won't appear on ballots until 2028 at the earliest.[1]

The statutory updates represent progress on marriage equality, but advocates emphasize that fully repealing the discriminatory constitutional language remains essential for comprehensive protection of marriage rights in Wisconsin.