Almost one year after stepping down from being Senate Majority Leader, Bruno announced that he supported same-sex marriage - a position that in the past he had never taken publicly. In 2009, Bruno was asked by Governor David Paterson to speak out for same-sex marriage in Albany. Bruno also admitted in 2009 that he personally favored same-sex marriage but never brought it to the floor of the State Senate because the majority of his conference was against it, stating " is America, and we have inalienable rights... Life is short, and we should all be afforded the same opportunities and rights to enjoy it." Same-sex marriage legislation was passed in New York in 2011.