Arizona Town Set to Become First in the State to Allow Same-Sex Civil Unions

State constitution recognizes marriage as being between one man and one woman

(Reuters) - A former Arizona copper mining town reborn as an artists' community is poised to become on Tuesday the first city in the conservative southwestern state to allow civil unions between same-sex couples.

The City Council in Bisbee, a city of 5,600 residents in southeast Arizona, is set to pass an ordinance allowing any couple regardless of their sex or sexual orientation to join in a civil ceremony.