A majority in the state House has signed on to a bill that would legalize civil unions, giving the issue a genuine chance of advancing this session after years of stagnation.

Same-sex couples who obtain a license could have their civil union performed by a judge, retired judge or member of the clergy. Partners who enter into civil unions would have the same rights, benefits and protections under state law as married couples. The state would also recognize civil unions, domestic partnerships or same-sex marriages validly performed in other states.

"I think it's just time," said state House Majority Leader Blake Oshiro, D-33rd ('Aiea, Halawa Valley, 'Aiea Heights), who sponsored the bill.

Vermont, New Jersey and New Hampshire allow civil unions while Massachusetts and Connecticut have same-sex marriage. California had also legalized same-sex marriage until voters in November approved a constitutional amendment restricting marriage to heterosexual couples.

In 1998, nearly 70 percent of Hawai'i voters supported traditional marriage when they passed a constitutional amendment that gave the state Legislature the authority to reserve marriage to one man and one woman.

The state Supreme Court had ruled in 1993 that barring same-sex marriage could be a violation of equal protection rights.

Since 1997, same-sex couples in Hawai'i have been able to register with the state Department of Health as reciprocal beneficiaries, which provides some of the same protections as marriage, including inheritance and property rights, the ability to sue for wrongful death, and hospital visitation privileges.

Thirty-two lawmakers in the 51-member House have signed Oshiro's civil-unions bill, including state House Speaker Calvin Say, D-20th (St. Louis Heights, Palolo Valley, Wilhelmina Rise), and state Rep. Jon Riki Karamatsu, D-41st (Waipahu, Village Park, Waikele), the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

Karamatsu said he believes he will have the votes to move the bill out of his committee, where it has stalled in the past, most recently in 2007. He said part of the difference this session is that gay-rights activists have broadened their outreach to include organized labor, the interfaith community and social-service groups.

"I think for the advocates that support civil unions, clearly, for a lot of them, it's a compromise" instead of same-sex marriage, he said. "In the past, it was all or nothing. And this year, it has changed a lot, and I think that has helped them. I think they are a little bit more aware of the political process now."

MOMENTUM BUILT

Many gay rights activists felt cheated two years ago when majority Democrats would not hold a vote on a civil-unions bill in the House Judiciary Committee because it was likely to be defeated.

In the aftermath of that setback, a new group, the Family Equality Coalition, was formed and has quietly been building support for civil unions with groups such as UNITE HERE Local 5, the hotel workers' union, and the Interfaith Alliance Hawai'i, a collection of religious leaders from different faiths.

Alan Spector, a social worker and co-chair of the Family Equality Coalition, said the long-term goal is to legalize same-sex marriage. But he described the civil-unions bill as significant momentum.

With a majority in the House supportive of civil unions, advocates believe the test will come in the state Senate, where there could be opposition from the Senate Judiciary and Government Operations Committee.

State Sen. Brian Taniguchi, D-10th (Manoa, McCully), the committee's chairman, said he would hear the bill if it crosses over from the House. "We're certainly going to take a look at it," he said.

On the six-member committee, Taniguchi, state Sen. Dwight Takamine, D-1st (Hamakua, S. Hilo), and state Sen. Clarence Nishihara, D-18th (Waipahu, Crestview, Pearl City), are supportive of civil unions. State Sen. Mike Gabbard, D-19th (Kapolei, Makakilo, Waikele), and state Sen. Sam Slom, R-8th (Kahala, Hawai'i Kai), are opposed.

SWING VOTE

Gabbard was among the leaders in the movement against same-sex marriage in the 1990s.

"The people of Hawai'i, we decided this issue 10 or 11 years ago, when 70 percent of the people voted against same-sex marriage," he said. "And, to me, civil unions is same-sex marriage with a different name."

The potential swing vote on the committee is state Sen. Robert Bunda, D-22nd (North Shore, Wahiawa), who has opposed same-sex marriage in the past but said he will keep an open mind on civil unions.

"For me, I have to read and digest what's in the bill before I actually make a decision," he said. "I've been told I'm the swing vote, I don't know for sure. If I am, my priority is to make sure that I understand fully what's before us."