ILB Q75 4_v.w'1'I*“' 0971 Ilomestic lliolnc if he Gnmmunitv — min I Iliuas To : watcn M! For nails 17 Euualitv Begins in VBI'|lI0lII nails 23 Jeflords Receives National HIV/AIDS Leadership Award BY BARBARA DOZETOS em1ont’s Senator James Jeffords is being hon- ored as a leader in the fight against AIDS by an organi- zation representing Americans affected by HIV/AIDS and 3200 community-based organizations that serve them. AIDS Action is presenting the legislator with one of five National Leadership Awards at a ceremony in Washington, DC this month. The group calls vleffords “the leading voice of moderation on health care issues in the Republican Party.” Senator Jeffords sponsored the renewal of the Ryan White Bill, which doubled the small state block grants for HIV and AIDS care. Along with Senators Kennedy, Roth, and Moynihan, he also recently introduced a “Back-to-Work” plan designed to allow the disabled to return to work without losing health cov- erage. The bill easily passed out of the Senate Finance Committee and currently has 68 co-spon- sors. Tim Palmer, executive direc- tor of Vermont CARES, the state’s largest AIDS service orga- nization, said, “Senator Jeffords has made a real difference in making sure that Vermonters liv- ing with HIV have access to_ quality care.” Jeffords says he is proud to be recognized for his work in help- ing people living with HIV and AIDS. “It’s a glowing feeling; it’s nice to be known for-some- thing positive.” The senator adamantly main- tains that his Vermont upbringing is the reason for his more-moder- ate-than-many-Republicans atti- tude. “It’s the storehouse of inde- pendence, with a history of not allowing others to tell it what to do,” Jeffords says, adding that he is “emotionally involved in pre- serving people’s freedom.” Other individuals being hon- ored at the April 5 ceremony are actress Rosie Perez and Jeanne White, President of the Ryan wzcmmmawnmammaa-nun Ierronns, p4 VOLUME XIV, NUMBER 03 V‘ V AND TRANSGENDER ISSUES HE MOUNTAINS 1‘ APRIL 1999 WWW.VTPR|DE.ORG Flanaglaniitfotflun for US Senat i 2000 I Auditor to Talfi on jeffords BY BARBARA DOZETOS his country’s first openly gay statewide elected official has I announced his candidacy for the office of United States Senator in 2000. If he is successful in the Democratic primary next spring, Ed Flanagan will oppose Senator James Jeffords in the November 2000 general election. If he defeats Jetfords, Flanagan will become the first openly gay senator in the nation’s history. Flanagan says the timing of his announcement is partially based on financial reality — the need to start fundraising. “You can’t allow yourself to be put at a disadvantage when you’re run- ning against somebody who started the race years ago and has spent and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars toward his 2000 campaign.” Under current regulations, a person who has raised $5000 V must file as a candidate. _ Although his recent experience has been in Montpelier, Flanagan is no stranger to Washington"-As a';high school, college,” 9 and law‘ student, he worked on the floor of the United States A Senate. He also served as a policy analyst in President Carter’s administration. First elected as Vemtont’s auditor-in 1992, Flanagan explains that his duties have extended beyond balancing the state’s check- ing account. Although “crunching numbers is obviously impor- ‘tant,” he says that most of his duties involve checking for legal compliance. “Frankly, we look for trouble, because where there’s At the RUl2?Community Center First Supper on March 27, Flanagan reminisced about headlines declaring him the first “open- ly gay or lesbian” individual elected to a statewide office. He quipped that he would choose between the two labels soon. FLANA_GAN, p4 pnous narvtxew oroud |t’s I999. Do YouKnow Where Your Representative ls? Last month, House Bill 479 was introduced to the Vermont legislature. If passed, the legislation would make it illegal to perform or recognize same-gender marriages in Vermont. Fifty-six representatives co-sponsored the bill introduced by George Schiavone of Shelbume. Following is a list of the sponsors and the text of H.479. Starr of Troy Fyfe of Newport City Lehman of Hartford Quaid of Williston Allard of St. Albans Town Gervais of Enosburg Marron of Stowe Randall of Bradford Atkins of Winooski Gray of Barre Town Maslack of Poultney Richardson of Weathersfield Baker of West Rutland Gretkowski of Burlington Mazur of South Burlington Schaefer of Colchester Barney of Highgate Hathaway of Barton McGrath of Ferrisburg Sheltra of Derby Blanchard of Essex Helm of Castleton McNamara of Burlington Sherman of St. Johnsbury Bourdeau of Hyde Park Hoag of Woodford Morrissey of Bennington Smith of New Haven Brown of Walden Holmes of Bethel Mullin of Rutland Town Sweetser of Essex Buckland of Newport Town Houston of Ferrisburg O’Donnell of, Vemon Towne of Berlin Clark of St. Johnsbury Howrigan of Fairfield Palmer of Pownal Valsangiacomo of Barre City Cleland of Northtield Hudson of Lyndon Peaslee of Guildhall Willett of St. Albans City DePoy of Rutland City Krawczyk of Bennington Pembroke of Bennington Winters of Williamstown Dominick of Starksboro Larocque of Bamet Pike of Mendon Wood of Brandon Flory of Pittsford Larrabee of Danville Pratt of Castleton Young of Orwell sister's daughter, father's sister *[or]‘, mother's sister or another man.. (a) If a person residing and intending to continue to reside in this state is prohibited from contracting mar- riage under the laws of this state and such person goes into another state or country and there contracts a marriage prohibited and declared void by the laws of this state, such marriage shall be null and void for all purposes in this state. Statement of purpose: This bill proposes to clarify existing law concerning marriage. AN ACT RELATING TO CLARIFICATION OF EXISTING LAWS CONCERNING MARRIAGE It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont: Sec. 2. 15 V.S.A. § 2 is amended to read: § 2. WOMAN FORBIDDEN TO MARRY RELATIVES OR ANOTHER WOMAN A woman shall not marry her father, grandfather, son, grandson, brother, brother’s son, sister’s son, father's brother '[or]‘, mother's brother or another woman. (b) This state shall not give effect to any public act, , record, or judicial proceeding of any other state or jurisdiction regarding legal marriage that does not also meet the requirements of sections 1 and 2 of this chapter. Sec. 1. 15 \/.S.A. § 1 is amended to read: § 1. MAN FORBIDDEN TO MARRY C RELATIVES OR ANOTHER MAN - Sec. 3. 15 V.S.A. § 5 is amended to read: §5. MARRIAGE ENTERED INTO IN A man shall not marry his mother, grandmother, ANOTHER STATE daughter, granddaughter, sister, brother's daughter,