With New York’s legislative session scheduled to end today, negotiations between Gov. Cuomo and Republican state senators continued over the weekend, as did Archbishop Timothy Dolan’s offensive campaign against equality. News reports suggest that the negotiations—and the final vote needed to give marriage equality supporters a majority in the Senate—were over the scope of the religious exemptions in the bill. Wavering Republican senators are reportedly seeking broader religious exemptions akin to those contained in New Hampshire’s marriage equality law.
CNN and other news outlets have reported that the governor can extend the legislative session beyond today’s deadline and has said that he would do so. Today, a Buffalo television station reported that the marriage vote would likely take place tomorrow; it said the governor and Republicans were still working on reaching agreement on other unresolved legislative business regarding rent control and property taxes.
