The Success Of Marriage Equality Awaits The Committee Of Conference

by: Rep. Jim Splaine

Wed May 27, 2009 at 21:49:56 PM EDT

It is traditional that Committees of Conference are made up of members of the Legislative Committees to which a bill had been sent.  All members on this CoC are on the House or Senate Judiciary Committees.

The first meeting of the HB 73 CoC will be Friday in room 104 of the Legislative Office Building at 1:30 PM.  All meetings of a Committee of Conference are open to the public.  Some such Committees hold one meeting and that's it; others have several meetings over the course of several days, and even longer.  The first time the HB 73 CoC could report back to the House and Senate with a recommendation is next Wednesday, June 3rd.  It is possible that a report could wait until the Wednesday, June 10th Legislative Session day.  

Let's keep in mind two important facts:
FACT 1: House Bill 73 is NOT an amended version of the marriage equality bill, nor does it "amend" HB 436.  House Bill 436 has passed the House and Senate, and awaits on the Senate President's desk before moving onto the Governor's Office.  That is a normal procedure at this point of a Legislative Session depending on whether related bills need to "catch up" in the process, so that they can then be given to the Governor together.  HB 436 IS the marriage equality bill, and it is stand-alone legislation that creates the process of same-gendered couples being able to be married.  

House Bill 310, a short bill, has also passed the House and Senate, and is accompanying HB 436 eventually because it makes small changes to statute concerning marriage procedures.  It too is not an "amendment" to HB 436, but instead affects separate statutory language.  All together, our marriage laws cover dozens of pages of state laws.  

HB 73 is not a long bill.  It is about a page long, and has specific protections for religious groups, Churches, and those who are employed by them from having to be engaged in marriage ceremonies which they don't wish  to be.  It is, quite essentially, a way to more clearly state the protections of religion which are already written into our Constitution and other state laws.  It is in part based on the Connecticut marriage equality legislation recently passed in that state.

However, the House voted by 207 to 168 to create a Committee of Conference to further consider the bill, and I consider that to be an excellent sign that the majority of the House membership wants to find a way to make this work.  The Senate voted 14 to 10 to agree to the House request for the CoC.

The Governor wants his core principles as he originally proposed, but the CoC will evaluate the language to see if changes are needed.  The job of a Committee of Conference is to find a way to get all parties -- the House,  the Senate, and obviously, the Governor to say "yes" on a bill.  I think we stand a chance to do this.  

My advice to all who support marriage equality is to keep our focus on the issue of marriage equality, and within the confines of HB 73 on religious freedom.  Both are important concepts we should all want to protect.  

Religious freedom -- the right of Churches and religious organizations to decide their own membership, their own standards for use of their property, and their own philosophies, should be protected.  No religion should have to perform services for marriages if they do not want to.

That's all the Governor has requested in HB 73, and we should be able to deliver.  If we do not deliver, he will veto HB 436, and all our work of the past eight months will have been for nothing.  That's a fact.  His is a reasonable request, and I much appreciate that he has come far in his own journey to accept marriage equality.  Many are not there yet, but he is.

I believe, and others have joined me in this observation, that the language that the Governor is requesting makes our marriage equality effort even better.  In this country, we are still "inventing" the law concerning marriage equality, and how to best provide it is a work-in-progress.  

Making sure and being clear that religious institutions will not be forced to hold ceremonies or be of service to same-gendered couples if that is against their faith is something we should want to guarantee.  Plenty of other religious faiths want to welcome gays and lesbians.  

Having law that clearly protects religious freedom and independence will also help make the cause of the discussion in other states which will be considering marriage equality in the next few months easier, such as in Rhode Island, New Jersey, and New York.  

At the same time, our focus should be on the big picture that if we don't pass HB 73, New Hampshire will be an island of discrimination surrounded by the marriage equality rights of Canada, Vermont, Massachusetts, Maine, and Connecticut.  

This issue is not about a Governor.  It is not about Republicans or Democrats.  It is not about one or more House members who we have not yet persuaded.  It is about the tens of thousands of New Hampshire gay and lesbian citizens -- our neighbors, friends, co-workers, and family members -- who will benefit when HB 436 is signed into law by Governor John Lynch.  

Let's deliver on passing HB 73.  Please contact the 25 House Democrats, as well as any of the Republicans in your district who did not support HB 73 last week.  You can find the May 20th roll call vote at http://www.gencourt.state.nh.u...

Send an E-Mail, but even more important is to call them and let them know that as a constituent, you request that they vote for HB 73 so that New Hampshire will have marriage equality.  

In the meantime, I urge us to remain positive and not point fingers to any individual -- because this isn't about the "one," it is about the many -- it is about those tens of thousands of our residents who have for so long been denied acceptance, and are so close to getting it.