LITTLE ROCK -- Jerry Cox of the Arkansas Family Council Action Committee says he has received his share of hate mail and hate e-mails in recent months -- not to mention a few annoying phone calls.

But, he says, he has thousands of years of history -- and common sense -- on his side.

On Nov. 4, voters in Arkansas will consider whether to pass a law prohibiting adoption by cohabitating heterosexual and homosexual couples. Although the law -- it's called Initiated Act 1 on the ballot -- would cover all non-married couples, it's been dubbed by some the "gay adoption ban," and Cox and his office have received plenty of unwanted attention. They're the group that organized a petition drive to put it on the ballot.

Only one other state, Utah, has a similar law banning adoption by all couples living together before marriage.

Cox's group calls the proposal the Arkansas Adoption and Foster Care Act. It would not apply to single people.

"Every parenting study ever done, all the world's major religions, thousands of years of history and common sense tell us that the best place for a child to grow up is in a stable home with a married mother and father," said Cox, who is president of the Arkansas family organization. "Everything we know tells us the best place for a child is in a stable home with a married mother and father. We know not every situation is that, but if we're going to go out here and deliberately create families, then why don't we strive for the best we can do?"

The ballot measure is the fifth Cox has organized, and, he says, it was the most difficult one. Four years ago, a marriage amendment made it on the ballot with ease, obtaining more than 200,000 signatures. The adoption act -- which would be a law and not an amendment to the constitution -- garnered about 90,000 signatures.

While more than the 62,000 needed, supporters had taken advantage of a 30-day grace period. They initially turned in 66,000, but some signatures were invalidated, dropping them below the 62,000 threshold. Supporters then used the 30 days to gather another 30,000 signatures.

Supporters believe the measure can pass. A 2003 study for the Center for Law and Social Policy cited data showing that the average cohabiting union lasts only two years. The same study showed that cohabiting relationships that do result in marriage have a much higher divorce rate than couples who do not live together before marriage.

In addition to stability, studies show children in a married household with a mother and a father are less likely to be poor, are healthier, are less likely to be physically abused and tend to do better in schools. Conservatives also note that states placing children in homosexual homes are intentionally creating either a father-less or a mother-less home.

Cox believes the act, if passed, will survive any lawsuit.

The proposed law would apply to private adoptions as well as foster care. Opponents often ask Cox and other supporters if they believe it's best to leave children in foster care rather than put them in a home with same-sex parents. Cox has an answer.

For more information about the adoption act, or to donate, visit the Web site at www.ArkansasAdoptionAct.com.