Civil unions bill in limbo

Civil unions bill in limbo
By Amy Wooten
Copyright by The Chicago Free Press
June 4, 2009
http://www.chicagofreepress.com/node/3566


Because state lawmakers Sunday faced a fiscal crisis and a looming deadline, a bill that would have granted Illinois same-sex couples civil unions if passed never came up for a vote before the session ended.

After rejecting Gov. Pat Quinn’s plan to increase the state income tax in order to deal with a huge deficit, the Illinois House worked Sunday, the last day of the legislative session, to pass a temporary budget right before the midnight deadline. Openly gay state Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago) decided in the session’s final hours not to call his civil unions bill to a House vote, where he needed 60 votes for it to pass.

All Sunday, Harris constantly provided constituents and civil unions supporters updates via Facebook. Sunday evening, Harris let folks know that he decided calling civil unions to a vote would not be wise considering the hostile atmosphere downstate due to the fiscal crisis, which he described as a “mess.” He added that he is confident his bill will come up for a vote in an upcoming session, and stressed that civil unions supporters should continue to call, write and visit their representatives.

Because lawmakers passed a temporary budget only meant to last for a handful of months, state legislators could return to Springfield in as little as a few weeks to hammer out a new budget. If lawmakers don’t reconvene earlier to work out a new budget, a new session starts in November. The issue of civil unions can be revisited as soon as lawmakers are back in Springfield.

Harris initially hoped to call the bill May 28, but a downstate legislator successfully stalled his attempt. In a last-minute effort to stop a vote, Right-wing state Rep. David Reis (R-Olney), a conservative Catholic, filed for five query notes, a procedural move that aimed to slow down or stop a third reading and full House vote on the civil unions bill.

In hopes of a swift passage, the civil unions bill (HB2234) was recently attached to a “shell” Senate bill that amends the Code of Civil Procedure, SB1716. Reis’ move caused the delay in the bill’s consideration on the day supporters hoped for a vote. The bill’s sponsors spent two days filing the notes as amended.

On Friday, civil unions supporters were confident that the bill would come up for a vote over the weekend. Equality Illinois policy director Rick Garcia had told CFP that he was hopeful that time remained, considering House leadership extended the bill’s deadline to May 31. Garcia also expressed confidence that the bill had the necessary votes to pass.

Harris held back on a vote earlier in legislative session because he was unsure that he had enough votes. Civil unions supporters have been working hard in recent months lobbying lawmakers and canvassing nearby suburbs to garner more support.

This wasn’t the first civil unions bill to die in session. Last session, because of the Blagojevich scandal, time ran out, and the civil unions bill died when the session adjourned.

If the bill passes during an upcoming session, Illinois could become the sixth in the U.S. to allow civil unions.