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Associated Press - February 9, 2010 11:44 AM ET
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Lawmakers have failed in an effort to begin the process of amending the Iowa Constitution to ban gay marriage.
Republicans tried procedural moves Tuesday morning to pull measures out of committees and force a vote, but they couldn't get enough votes in either the House or the Senate.
That means Iowans will likely have to wait until 2014 at the earliest to vote on whether to amend the constitution and ban same-sex marriage. It takes votes by two consecutive general assemblies before proposed constitutional amendments can go before voters.
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy says lawmakers have their hands full with budget problems and don't have time to get bogged down in divisive social issues.
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