Civil & Human Rights

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

If everything goes as planned, gay rights history will be made on Thursday in the Senate. Gay rights bill poised for final Senate vote – Politico:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Wednesday set up the the final series of votes for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act — which prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity — culminating in a vote final passage on Thursday afternoon if the bill passes a key, 60-vote threshold procedural test in the morning.

Senate passage of ENDA seemed more and more likely Wednesday after the Senate unanimously accepted an amendment by Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) protecting religious groups exempted under the legislation from government retaliation. That amendment likely secured the vote of several other Republicans pushing for that language, including Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

[“Asked whether he would vote for the bill, Sen. John McCain
(R., Ariz.) said ‘yes,’ then added
in a brief interview, ‘If we get the amendments worked out,’” according
to an early morning AP report:

McCain was a co-sponsor of the Portman-Ayotte amendment.
The Senate plans to vote Thursday on an amendment by Sen. Pat Toomey
(R., Pa.) to expand the number of groups that are covered under the
religious exemption.]

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Hawaii Tribune Herald reports Hawaii House committees forward gay marriage bill:

Two state House committees sent a bill that would legalize gay
marriage to the full chamber Tuesday night, ending a five-day public
hearing that exposed deep divisions in Hawaii on an issue being
considered across the United States.

Members of the House
Judiciary and Finance committees voted for the bill after hearing more
than 55 hours of public testimony, leading to alterations in the
measure.

The committees made three amendments. One strengthens
provisions that exempt clergy and organizations from having to perform
gay marriage ceremonies, modeled after a similar law in Connecticut.
Another deletes language that governed how children of gay couples could
establish Native Hawaiian parentage to qualify for state benefits. A
third moves the date ceremonies can begin to Dec. 2.

The full
House is expected to consider the bill in a second reading this morning,
with the possibility of fully passing the bill Friday, House
spokeswoman Carolyn Tanaka said.

The amendments mean the measure will have to be approved again by the state Senate, which passed the original bill last week. [Update: The House will send SB 1 to the Senate for its consideration early next week, following the Veterans Day holiday Monday.]

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Wow, that was fast! The Illinois House today passed the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act, making Illinois the 15th state to allow gay and lesbian couples to wed. Gay marriage bill passes in Illinois House:

Defying Bible-quoting critics,
the Illinois House narrowly approved legislation to make Illinois the
15th state to allow gay and lesbian couples to wed, clearing the way for
quick and likely approval by the state Senate and Gov. Pat Quinn.

The measure passed 61 to 54, with two voting present.

When the historic roll call on
the bill was finalized, cheers from the crowded House galleries erupted
and its main sponsor, state Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago), was swarmed
by fellow House members who supported his cause.

“This bill will give them a better future,” Harris said in a steady
voice, referring to same-sex couples across the state. “It’ll help
families to show their love and commitment to each other and give all
families a chance to live as full and equal citizens in the greatest
country on the face of the earth.”

House Speaker Michael J.
Madigan was one of the final speakers in the debate, giving the bill his
blessing, pledging to vote yes and quoting Pope Francis’ famed “Who am I
to judge remark.”

Signalling his evolution on
the issue, the powerful Southwest Side Democrat invited supporters of
same-sex marriage to witness the historic vote from his box in the House
gallery.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

The Chicago Sun-Times reports that the legislative deadlock in the Illinois House of Representatives may be over and the House will vote on the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act this week, with an amendment to delay the effective date until 2014. House could vote on gay marriage this week, with boost from Madigan:

A key House lawmaker seeking to legalize
same-sex marriage remained cagey Monday about voting on his legislation
this week, but all signals pointed toward that — with perhaps the
biggest sign of all being House Speaker Michael Madigan’s heightened
involvement in the push.

State Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago), the
lead House sponsor of the measure to permit gay and lesbian couples to
wed in Illinois, gave his social media followers a strong hint that a
long-delayed House vote on the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness
Act may be imminent.

“Heading to Springfield to get it done,”
Harris posted in a status update Monday morning on his Facebook
account, as state lawmakers prepared to convene Tuesday for the final,
scheduled, three-day leg of their fall session.

Harris also dropped another hint over
the weekend that the tally was at a critical phase, telling his Facebook
followers that he was “counting votes and twisting arms.”

In an earlier interview with the Chicago
Sun-Times, Harris said his bid to persuade House members to pass his
legislation was “moving in the right direction” and, in yet another sign
of a possible roll call this week, said “the time is now to make sure
people are treated with equality in Illinois.”

A concrete precursor to a vote this week likely would be a move by
Harris to tweak the bill so it would take effect next year instead of
possibly later this year. Doing so would lower the number of votes he
would need in the House to pass it from 71 to 60 but would require
backing from the Senate, which should not be a problem. As of late
Monday, Harris had not filed an amendment containing such a change.

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Religious conservatives, taking full
advantage of the state House's commitment to hear from everyone on gay
marriage, have deliberately sought to prolong a hearing before the House
Judiciary Committee and the House Finance Committee in a strategy of a "citizens filibuster" of the bill. Gay-marriage opponents stall hearing (Honolulu Star-Advertiser, subscription required).

The Hawaii Tribune-Herald reports, Hawaii gay marriage hearing stretches into 4th day:

Two Hawaii House committees considering a bill to legalize gay marriage are tightening rules on testimony at a joint hearing after some
people used a [stolen] registration list to speak for others.

Rep. Sylvia Luke, chairwoman of the House Finance Committee, told reporters Monday that the judiciary and finance committees were allowing people to only testify for themselves and checking identifications.

The tighter regulations come after a speaker registration list went missing from outside the auditorium late Saturday, then was used by some people to testify for registrants who were called but not present, Luke said.