The language for the initiative submitted to the Attorney General's office is the same lawyer-vetted language as that submitted for a failed initiative in 2010. The proposed initiative opens with protections for "religious freedom" - exempting religious officials or institutions from having to perform same-sex marriages. It then strikes the current definition of marriage as between a man and a woman and substitutes: "Marriage is between only two persons and shall not be restricted on the basis of race, color, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, or religion."