Legislators choose to hear bill on civil unions

By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Advertiser Capitol Bureau

In the midst of the national controversy over same-sex marriages, key Hawai'i lawmakers have decided to hear a bill tonight that would allow gay couples to form civil unions that give them the same benefits and obligations as married people.

It is getting an airing now, House Democratic leaders said yesterday, in large part because of the national debate.

Gay rights advocates hailed the decision, although they still believe the goal should be legalization of same-sex marriages.

"We've been patient," said Kaua'i resident Martin Rice. "We've been waiting for them (lawmakers) to do something."

Opponents of same-sex marriage criticized any move to pass civil-union legislation. City Councilman Mike Gabbard, founder of the Alliance for Traditional Marriage and Values, pointed out that an overwhelming majority of Hawai'i's electorate voted for a constitutional amendment in 1998 allowing the Legislature to define marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

"There's no difference in my mind between civil unions and same-sex marriages," Gabbard said.

It wasn't clear yesterday whether the bill would have enough support to pass this session.

"There is support, but I wouldn't say it's overwhelming," Oshiro said. "I'd say it's a close call."

The bill allows two adults who are not related by blood but live together, who agree to be jointly responsible for each other's basic living expenses, to file a declaration of civil union with the Department of Health. Such a declaration would extend the same rights and obligations as spouses in marital relationships and prohibit discrimination based on a civil-union partnership status.

Dissolving a civil union would require a court process similar to divorce.

"The civil-unions bill says basically that any time you're going to give a benefit in law to a married couple, the same benefits would carry over to a civil-unions couple," Oshiro said.

The debate returns to the Capitol as the sensitive topic is exploding on the national scene. Last week, the Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled that it went against the state's constitution to bar gay marriages.

President Bush called the Massachusetts ruling "deeply troubling" and suggested he might propose a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriages if judges persist in approving them.

In San Francisco, city officials have openly defied California state law by issuing more than 2,000 marriage licenses to gay couples since late last week.

In Hawai'i, House Majority Leader Scott Saiki, D-22nd (McCully, Pawa'a), said the issue had been under discussion among lawmakers for some time, but "given recent events, it's important for us to evaluate civil-rights issues like this one."

Rice said the bill was a good call by lawmakers seeking to address a 1996 Circuit Court decision that required the state to extend the same rights, benefits and obligations to same-sex couples as those given to married people. The decision by the state judge was based on a landmark 1993 Hawai'i Supreme Court ruling that the same-sex marriage ban violated the state constitution unless the state could justify the prohibition.

Rice said distinguishing civil unions from marriage as currently defined is a form of "second-class citizenship," but "it's better than the third-class citizenship we have now."

Gay rights activist William Woods called civil unions "unequal, unfair, but a step in the right direction" toward the goal of legalizing same-sex marriages. Civil unions are "simply not the goal," he said. "Separate but equal is not really equal at all."

Woods said a civil-unions bill, from a legal standpoint, does not give gay couples all the benefits of opposite-sex alliances, particularly in the area of federal and international laws tied to the definition of marriage.

For instance, he said, a spouse who is a legal alien or immigrant would become a U.S. citizen automatically upon marrying one. A civil union would not allow that, but legalizing same-sex marriages would, he said.

Gabbard said lawmakers should not try to pass the civil-unions bill. "Trying to legalize same-sex marriage by disguising it is a betrayal of the public trust," he said.

Deacon Walter Yoshimitsu, interim director of the Hawai'i Catholic Conference, echoed Gabbard's comments. "The bill going through the committee is a civil-union bill, which is just another name for same-sex marriage," he said.

Yoshimitsu said lawmakers should work on addressing concerns raised to the reciprocal benefits law approved by the Legislature in 1997 and heavily criticized by gay rights advocates who pointed out that only 50 to 60 benefits were included. Woods described the law as "a joke" that offered very little.

Since 1997, the Health Department reported, 864 couples have registered for reciprocal benefits; 56 have since terminated the arrangements.

Rep. William "Bud" Stonebraker, R-17th (Hawai'i Kai, Kalama Valley), said he would not support the civil-union measure if it made it out of committee. "The people of Hawai'i have made their opinion clear on the issue of homosexual marriage, and to be further trying to advance this cause just doesn't flow with the opinions of the state," he said.

Senate Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committee Chairwoman Colleen Hanabusa, D-21st (Nanakuli, Makaha), was surprised to learn that her House counterparts were hearing the civil-unions bill, and said it was unknown whether the House and Senate had enough votes to pass such a measure.

Linda Smith, senior policy advisor to Gov. Linda Lingle, said the administration was focused on its core issues and would not be offering testimony on the bill tonight. Gay rights advocates say Lingle has told them she supports the concept of civil unions.

Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com or at 525-8070.