Civil Unions up for Potential Veto

Hawaii governor Linda Lingle on Monday afternoon put the civil unions bill, passed by the legislature in April, on a list of potential vetoes, Hawaii's KITV reports. Lingle is required by law to let lawmakers know what bills she may veto.

At a press conference at the state capitol, the governor said she needed more time to decide whether or not to approve the measure and that she would wait until her deadline, July 6, to announce her decision. She said the civil unions bill, which would extend marriage-like benefits to same- and opposite-sex couples in Hawaii, is the most difficult of the 39 proposals on her potential veto list.

"What makes it the most difficult is the intensity of the feeling on the part of the public. I don't know of another bill that comes close to that," she said. "I can tell you that throughout the process, I've gone back and forth" on whether to sign the bill.

Civil unions supporters told the Associated Press that Lingle, a Republican, is doing what they expected.

"Actually, I was pleased to hear that--that she is going back and forth on the issue," said Alan Spector, a board member with Equality Hawaii. "It shows that she's still engaged in deep, thoughtful consideration of the bill."