A bill that would effectively decriminalize polygamy and dispel fears of prosecution for plural marriage among consenting adults sailed through the Utah Senate on Tuesday.

The measure, SB102, cleared the Senate by a unanimous vote after scant debate and now heads to the House.

Current Utah law makes polygamy a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. It can be up to 15 years if the defendant is also convicted of fraud, child abuse, sexual abuse, domestic abuse or human smuggling or trafficking.

Henderson’s bill would leave intact these enhanced penalties and add a few more crimes under which polygamy would be a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Senate Majority Leader Evan Vickers, R-Cedar City, stressed that “the bad actors are still going to be penalized” under Henderson’s legislation.

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Henderson, R-Spanish Fork, has argued that decriminalizing bigamy will encourage victims of crime to come out of the shadows and report abuse without fear of prosecution.