Indianapolis - By a 7-4 vote along party lines, the state Senate Judiciary committee voted to approve an amendment to the Indiana Constitution banning same-sex marriages and all "incidents of marriage," a phrase that opponents repeatedly pointed out is legally untested and has more far-reaching implications than just preventing same-sex marriage.

Following the public testimony, Senator Tim Lanane (D-Anderson) introduced an amendment to change the "incidents of marriage" section (often referred to as "Part B") to state that only the legislature could define marriage, which would prevent judges from overturning marriage laws, but would not prevent future legislatures from taking up the issue.

An amendment to drop the "Part B" language altogether was introduced by Senator John Broden (D-South Bend). Both amendments failed by a 7-4 vote.

A small disruption by the Indiana Action Network who sang "We Shall Overcome" during a rambling speech by Senator Brent Steele (R-Bedford), who inexplicably spoke at length after the attempts to amend the Part B section had failed and before the inevitable passage of the amendment itself.

The measure will next go to the full Senate for consideration.