co civil union bill moves to full senate

[fizzgig]

A bill to establish civil unions in Colorado passed its second committee hearing of 2013 this morning – the Senate Appropriations Committee – and now moves on to the full Senate where it is expected to also pass and advance to the House.

The Jan. 31 Appropriations Committee hearing, which was not open to public testimony, focused on the bill’s impact on the state budget. Committee members voted 4-3 to advance the bill.

State law requires all bills to receive at least one public committee hearing in each legislative chamber, in which anyone present can sign up to testify for or against it. Bills must also be opened for debate among the elected members of each chamber when they reach each chamber’s floor for final votes. The full Senate will debate and vote on civil unions late next week or the week after, and the bill will receive another round of public testimony during a yet-unscheduled committee hearing in the House after it advances there.

Sen. Pat Steadman, who introduced the civil unions bills during the 2011 and 2012 regular legislative sessions, is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, as is newly-elected Sen. Jessie Ulibarri, who in previous years testified for civil unions as a private citizen with his partner Louis Trujillo. Steadman and Ulibarri joined the two other committee Democrats who voted for the bill, while all three Republicans there voted against it.

more here

the leg is moving swiftly on this one.

[William769]

1. NO TO CIVIL UNIONS!

Marriage Equality or nothing!

[fizzgig]

2. we've got to get our marriage amendment repealed

and i think we're nearly to a place where we can do that. there has been much debate over whether the fight should be first for civil unions, then getting the amendment repealed or going straight for the amendment.

i think it would be a good idea to get it on the ballot next year and i think it would have a good change of passing even with the large blocks of conservatives across the state.