Hawaii Senate Passes Civil Unions

The Hawaii senate passed a civil unions bill Friday that, unlike a previous civil unions bill, will likely make its way to a supportive governor.

The bill, SB 232, passed by a 19-6 vote and is identical to HB 444, a 2010 civil unions bill passed by both Hawaii's house and senate but vetoed by then-governor Linda Lingle. Lingle, a Republican, was termed out of office in 2010, and Democrat Neil Abercrombie, a civil unions supporter, was elected in November.

"The Hawaii Senate has sent a strong message that discrimination against families headed by same-sex couples is wrong," HRC president Joe Solmonese said in a press release. "All people of Hawaii deserve to be treated with equal dignity and respect under the law, and no child should ever have to grow up feeling that their family is somehow less than that of their friends and neighbors."

The state house will likely take up the civil unions issue next week.