Openly gay Colorado Speaker Mark Ferrandino (D)Just now, the Colorado House voted 39-26 to grant final approval to a bill that would offer civil unions to same-sex couples, advancing it to Gov. John Hickenlooper’s (D) desk for his promised signature. Colorado has a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, so civil unions are an important extension of partner benefits until that amendment can be repealed or overturned.
Lawmakers have attempted to pass civil unions for several years now. In 2012, enough Republicans supported the bill for it to pass, but Republican leadership in the House blocked it by sending it to a (fourth) committee whose members voted to kill it. The expediency with which the bill advanced this year reflects the large victories Democrats enjoyed in the November election.
Here is how the House voted:
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