SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- State Sen. Mark Leno, D-San-Francisco, has announced that he introduced legislation that seeks to clarify state law regarding same-sex couples who have already married or plan to marry outside of California.

Senate Bill 54 would clarify that same-sex couples who married outside California before Proposition 8 went into effect on Nov. 5, 2008, are recognized as married spouses.

The bill also would confirm that those couples can receive the same rights and benefits as opposite-sex couples, with the exception of the designation of "marriage."

Proposition 8 prevents California from using the "marriage" designation for same-sex couples who marry after Nov. 5, 2008, but neither the proposition, nor the May 26 decision by the state's Supreme Court, specify how couples who married outside the state should be recognized.

"Proposition 8 not only creates a separate and unequal category for one minority group of Californians, but also creates confusion for same-sex couples who married outside of California," Leno said in a statement.

"Since we cannot remedy this confusion by restoring full marriage equality for all Californians, we are forced to clarify the rights and protections afforded to these couples and their families in state law," Leno said.

The bill was co-authored by the members of the LGBT Legislative Caucus, including Senator Christine Kehoe, D-San Diego, and Assemblymen Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, and John A. Perez, D-Los Angeles.

The bill has been sent to the Assembly Judiciary Committee, which is expected to hear it in the coming weeks.