Child Marriage Bill Defeated in the House

On December 16^th the House of Representatives failed to pass the International Protecting Girls by Preventing Child Marriage Act, which the Senate had approved earlier by unanimous vote. The bill, sponsored by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME), would have authorized the President to provide assistance to prevent the incidence of child marriage and promote the educational, health, economic, social, and legal empowerment of girls. The State Department would have been required to come up with a multi-year strategy to prevent child marriage and promote the empowerment of young girls who are at risk of child marriage. Although the Senate had approved the measure unanimously, the bill failed to get the 2/3rds votes needed to pass it under an expedited House procedure, after the Republican leadership urged its defeat. 

http://blog.populationinstitute.org/2010/12/21/shame-on-the-house/