
Hawaii Waits On Civil Unions, Gay and Straight
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Legal Help Desk
6/20/2010
"Hawaii's highly charged issue of civil unions is about to try to clear its last hurdle as the governor ponders whether to veto a measure that would enable same-sex and heterosexual couples who are not married to receive the same protections as married couples under the law. On Monday, June 21, Hawaii Republican Governor Linda Lingle is expected to include the civil-unions bill on her list of bills she may veto. She has until July 6 to indicate her intentions. Otherwise, on that date, the measure will become law without her signature.
"...'Hawaii's bill is unique in that it's open to same-sex and different-sex couples and may well be the wave of the future,' says Jenny Pizer, a marriage-project director for Lambda Legal Western Regional office, a gay-and-lesbian group headquartered in Texas. 'It's a nondiscriminatory approach, an approach that is different because it is open to everyone.'"