Same-sex marriage has been legally recognized in Oregon since May 19, 2014, when Judge Michael J. McShane of the U.S. District Court for the District Court of Oregon ruled in Geiger v. Kitzhaber that Oregon's 2004 state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages discriminated on the basis of sexual orientation in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution. A campaign that was then under way to win voter approval of a constitutional amendment legalizing same-sex marriage was suspended following the decision. Oregon was the seventeenth U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage. Polling suggests that a large majority of Oregon residents support the legal recognition of same-sex marriage. In July 2015, Governor Kate Brown signed legislation which performed "housekeeping" on various Oregon statutes, codifying same-sex marriage and bringing their wording into line with the court ruling in Geiger.House Bill 2478 (2015) - Oregon Legislature Bill Tracker
Previously in March and April 2004, Multnomah County issued marriage licenses to more than 3,000 same-sex couples until ordered by a state judge to stop doing so. In November, Oregon voters approved an amendment to the State Constitution that made it state policy to recognize only marriages "between one man and one woman". The validity of the licenses issued the previous spring was disputed, and the Oregon Supreme Court ruled in April 2005 that the newly adopted constitutional amendment had invalidated them. Oregon began recognizing same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions in October 2013. Domestic partnerships, providing some of the rights and benefits of marriage, have been recognized since 2008.
Domestic partnerships
Following the passage of the constitutional amendment and the Supreme Court's decision in Li and Kennedy, state officials began efforts to establish domestic partnerships granting virtually all of the rights and benefits of marriage. A bill was first passed in the Oregon State Senate in July 2005, but failed to pass the House of Representatives. Following the 2006 elections, similar legislation was re-introduced and passed both chambers of the Assembly. Governor Ted Kulongoski signed it into law on May 9, 2007. Since February 4, 2008, same-sex couples have had access to domestic partnerships, which guarantee almost all of the rights of marriage.
Same-sex marriage Marriage licenses issued in Multnomah County On March 3, 2004, Multnomah County began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples after its attorney issued a legal opinion that such marriages were lawful.Multnomah County authorizes same-sex marriages starting Wednesday On that day, Multnomah County issued 422 marriage licenses, compared to the 68 it issued on an average day. Local businesses reported an increase in the sales of flowers and other marriage-related services directly related to the beginning of same-sex marriages. Neighboring Washington and Clackamas counties announced that they were studying Multnomah County's legal opinion, but did not plan to immediately follow suit. At a hearing on March 9, 2004, after the county had issued approximately 1,700 marriage licenses to same-sex couples, County Circuit Judge Dale Koch refused to issue an injunction to stop the county from continuing the process. A later study by The Oregonian showed that out the approximately 1,700 same-sex couples married in the first week, 2,026 spouses were from Multnomah County, while about 900 others came from other locations in Oregon, about 490 from the state of Washington, and 30 from other states.Same-sex Marriage Statistics 2004 On March 10, 2004, the Oregon Legislative Counsel, Greg Chaimov, issued an opinion that "state law requires a county clerk to license the marriage of a same-sex couple." The office of Attorney General Hardy Myers issued an opinion on March 12, 2004, after reviewing it with Governor Ted Kulongoski, that concluded that Oregon law prohibits county clerks from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples; that the Oregon Supreme Court would likely find denying such licenses violates Article I, Section 20 of the Oregon Constitution; but that current state practices should not change in anticipation of such a ruling. It also said that the Attorney General's office lacked the authority to order Multnomah County to cease issuing licenses for same-sex marriages.Oregon Department of Justice: March 12, 2004, accessed November 1, 2012
On March 15, 2004, Multnomah County commissioners announced that they would continue to issue licenses to same-sex couples. On March 16, following public hearings, Benton County commissioners voted 2–1 to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples on March 24, but reversed their decision on March 22 after receiving two letters from the Attorney General and a phone call threatening the arrest of the county clerk, and decided to issue no marriage license at all pending a decision by the Multnomah County Court.
With the consent of the state, three same-sex couples sued the state of Oregon in Multnomah County Court, including Mary Li and Rebecca Kennedy, the first same-sex couple to receive a marriage license from Multnomah County. At a hearing before Judge Frank Bearden on April 16, 2004, in Li and Kennedy v. State of Oregon, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Basic Rights Oregon represented the plaintiffs and the Oregon Department of Justice and the Defense of Marriage Coalition defended the state's position.Mission Statement of the Defense of Marriage Coalition On April 20, 2004, Bearden ordered the county to stop issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and ordered the state to recognize the 3,022 marriage licenses already issued. The state had been holding the completed licenses pending a court decision as to their validity, rather than entering them into the records system. Bearden also found that the Oregon Constitution would likely allow some form of marriage rights to same-sex couples, and directed the Legislative Assembly to act on the issue within 90 days of the start of its next session. He ruled that if the Assembly failed to address the issue within that time, he would allow Multnomah County to resume issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. It was understood that both parties would appeal the decision. In July 2004, the Court of Appeals lifted the temporary ban blocking the registration of the marriage licenses issued by Multnomah County. The state announced that processing would take a week and began doing so within hours of the court's action.
On December 15, 2004, the Oregon Supreme Court heard arguments in the appeal of Li and Kennedy. Oregon argued that Multnomah County lacked the authority to issue same-sex marriage licenses and that Ballot Measure 36, the 2004 ballot initiative banning same-sex marriage, was retroactive, making the issue of those licenses moot. The Defense of Marriage Coalition argued that Measure 36 was not retroactive, there had been no constitutional violation of the rights of same-sex couples, and Multnomah County did not have the authority to issue licenses even to remedy a constitutional violation. The ACLU argued that Measure 36 was not retroactive, that the rights of same-sex couples under the Equal Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Oregon Constitution had been violated, and that counties were required to remedy perceived constitutional violations. On April 14, 2005, the Oregon Supreme Court decided Li and Kennedy, ruling that Multnomah County lacked the authority to remedy a perceived violation of the Oregon Constitution and that all marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples were void when issued. The court noted that the Oregon Constitution had since been amended to limit marriage to opposite-sex couples and it therefore declined to rule as to whether or not same-sex couples had any rights under the Equal Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Oregon Constitution.
Constitutional amendment
On May 21, 2004, the Defense of Marriage Coalition received approval for the language of a proposed initiative to prohibit same-sex marriage. It began circulating petitions to obtain the 100,840 valid signatures needed by July 2 to place the initiative on the November ballot. On November 2, 2004, voters approved Ballot Measure 36, a constitutional amendment defining the marriage of "a man and a woman" as the only one recognized by the state, by a margin of 57% to 43%. The Defense of Marriage Coalition said that opponents of Measure 36 had outspent their group more than 2 to 1. The now-defunct amendment read: "It is the policy of Oregon, and its political subdivisions, that only a marriage between one man and one woman shall be valid or legally recognized as a marriage."Wikisource:Oregon Constitution/Article XV
In February 2013, Basic Rights Oregon formed the group Oregon United for Marriage to put an initiative legalizing same-sex marriage on the November 2014 ballot. The initiative would have replaced the state's constitutional amendment restricting marriage to opposite-sex couples with provisions guaranteeing the right of all persons to marry without respect to gender. On July 26, 2013, the petition campaign to collect the required signatures was launched. By early December 2013, the 116,284 minimum required signatures had been reached, but signature collection continued. The campaign was endorsed by the Democratic Party of Oregon, and various major businesses. The campaign gathered more than 160,000 signatures, enough to place its proposal, the Oregon Same-Sex Marriage Amendment, on the November 4, 2014 statewide ballot. Following the May 2014 U.S. district court decision in Geiger v. Kitzhaber striking down Oregon's ban on same-sex marriage, the group announced that it was "confident that the freedom to marry [was] secure in Oregon" and that it would not proceed with the measure.
In April 2023, Senate Majority Leader Kate Lieber introduced a constitutional amendment guaranteeing a right to same-sex marriage, abortion and gender-affirming care to the Oregon Senate. On April 27, 2023, the Committee on Rules adopted the amendment by a vote of 3–2. On May 2, 2023, senators Tim Knopp and Bill Hansell recommended that the measure be modified to simply repeal the constitutional ban on same-sex marriage rather than instate language guaranteeing a right to marry. On June 15, 2023, Republicans announced that, as part of a deal with Democrats to end their six-week walkout, Democrats had agreed to kill the amendment. That same day, the Senate adopted a motion by a vote of 22–0 to re-refer the proposal to the Committee on Rules. The legislation ultimately died in committee when the Senate adjourned sine die on June 25, 2023. In June 2024, Basic Rights Oregon announced its intention to collect signatures for a ballot initiative repealing the ban. The campaign had to collect 156,231 valid signatures by July 2, 2026 to qualify for the November 2026 ballot. In February, the group announced it would end its campaign without giving an official explanation.
Recognition of out-of-state same-sex marriages On October 16, 2013, based on an opinion from the Oregon Department of Justice, the state's Chief Operating Officer, Michael Jordan, announced that Oregon would begin recognizing same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions "for the purposes of administering state programs."
Federal lawsuit