State Sen. Brian Taniguchi, chairman of the Senate Judiciary and Government Operations Committee, said today that he will likely vote against recalling a civil-unions bill from his committee.

"I'm headed toward going down on the pull," the senator said.

Taniguchi's opinion, as chairman, carries great weight among Senate Democrats and severely reduces the chances the bill will be pulled from committee. The Senate is expected to vote tomorrow on whether to pull the bill, a move that requires the votes of nine of 25 senators.

State Senate President Colleen Hanabusa, D-21st (Nanakuli, Makaha), said she would follow Taniguchi, as will several other senators.

State Senate Majority Leader Gary Hooser, D-7th (Kauai, Niihau), said he intends to force a vote on the recall tomorrow. Hooser said he is asking senators to vote their conscience.

Hanabusa and Hooser had said last month that there were likely the votes in the Senate to recall the bill and pass it on the floor. But opposition within the chamber has grown, with some senators uncomfortable about bypassing the committee and others concerned about the potential legal implications.

The bill, which passed the state House in February, would give same-sex partners the same rights, benefits and protections as married couples under state law. It would also recognize civil unions, domestic partnerships and same-sex marriages performed in other states as civil unions in Hawaii.

Hanabusa told fellow senators in private caucus today that the bill could lead to a lawsuit by gay activists claiming an equal protection right to marriage. A lawsuit was filed in Connecticut after that state passed a civil-unions bill. The Connecticut Supreme Court ruled in October that same-sex partners should have the right to marry.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii, University of Hawaii-Manoa constitutional law professor Jon Van Dyke, and former state Supreme Court justice Steven Levinson have told lawmakers that a similar lawsuit would be difficult in Hawaii because the state Constitution gives the Legislature the power to reserve marriage to a man and a woman.