Hawaii's House passed SB1, the marriage equaliy bill, on a thrid and
final reading in a 30-19 vote after hours of debate and many delays,
Hawaii News Now reports:
Advocates
of the bill, who flooded the mauka side of the Capitol Rotunda, erupted
in cheers and tears of joy as they reached for each other hugging and
kissing their fellow same-sex marriage supporters. Across the way on the
makai side, opponents fell quiet after hours of chanting "Let the
people vote!" -- many held hands and bowed their heads in prayer.
In a statement released by the Governor's
office immediately following the bill, Governor Neil Abercrombie -- who
called the Special Session -- said the following:
"I commend the House of Representatives for taking this historic vote to
move justice and equality forward. After more than 50 hours of public
testimony from thousands of testifiers on both sides of the issue,
evaluating dozens of amendments, and deliberating procedures through
hours of floor debates, the House passed this significant bill, which
directly creates a balance between marriage equity for same-sex couples
and protects our First Amendment freedoms for religious organizations. I
applaud Speaker Souki, Judiciary Chair Rhoads, Finance Chair Luke,
Majority Leader Saiki and the rest of the leadership team for their
patience, fairness and hard work in shepherding this bill through the
House. I am confident that the Senate will address the bill in the same
spirit. I look forward to a successful conclusion to this major step in
affirming everyone's civil rights."
The Senate will address the amended version of the bill on November 12.
Once passed, it would go into effect on December 2, making Hawaii the 16th state to have passed marriage equality.
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