SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah State Legislature has approved a bill to allow same-sex couples to enter into surrogacy agreements to have a child.
In a 24-1 vote, the Utah State Senate gave final approval to House Bill 234, sponsored by Rep. Patrice Arent, D-Millcreek.
Rep. Arent has said she is running the bill in response to a Utah Supreme Court ruling that struck down the state's ban on gay men entering into gestational agreements to have a child. A southern Utah couple sued the state after their surrogacy agreement was denied by a judge because Utah law said the words “mother and her plainly refer to a woman” and that because neither of the legally married intended parents were women, the judge had no choice.
The Utah Supreme Court said the law must change to comply with marriage equality.
The bill now goes to Governor Gary Herbert for his signature or veto.
The LGBTQ rights group Equality Utah praised the vote.
BREAKING! Utah Senate strikes discriminatory language from Utah's surrogacy law. This vote brings the statute into compliance with the ruling of the Utah Supreme Court. LGBTQ parents are equal under the law. Thank you @RepPatriceArent & @gopTODD for leading this effort! #utpol pic.twitter.com/VUaTIJIZZP
— Equality Utah (@EqualityUtah) February 27, 2020
