OREGON civil union bill dies

NEWS from the Human Rights Campaign
1640 Rhode Island Ave., N.W.
Washington, DC 20036-3278
E-mail: hrc [at] hrc.org

http://www.hrc.org

For Immediate Release -- Friday, August 5, 2005

Contact: Steven Fisher | Phone: (202) 216-1547 | Cell: (202) 431-7608
Contact: Jay Smith Brown | Phone: (202) 216-1580 | Cell: (202) 716-1650

OREGON CIVIL UNION BILL DIES
AFTER MAKING HISTORY

"No Oregon family should have to wait for equal rights and responsibilities,"
said HRC President Joe Solmonese.

WASHINGTON - The Oregon legislature adjourned this morning without a final
vote on the joint civil union and non-discrimination bill, killing the measure

for this legislative session. The bi-partisan legislation made history last
month when it passed the state Senate by a vote of 19-10, but Speaker of the
House Karen Minnis steadfastly refused to bring the bill up for a vote.

"No Oregon family should have to wait for equal rights and responsibilities,"
said HRC President Joe Solmonese. "Despite wide popularity for treating gay
families equally, Speaker Minnis thwarted every attempt for the legislature to
vote on the bill."

After passage of a constitutional amendment last year banning marriage for
same-sex couples, Basic Rights Oregon - the statewide gay, lesbian, bisexual and

transgender organization - began working toward passage of a bill to enact
civil unions and ban discrimination against GLBT Oregonians. HRC supported BRO

with a coordinated grassroots strategy on the bill including on-the-ground
staff support and generating constituent contacts to legislators.

"We are proud to have supported Basic Rights Oregon's valiant efforts to
protect all Oregon families equally," said Solmonese. "On the heels of the
constitutional amendment, getting off the defensive and calling on the
legislature to pass a bill that most Oregonians support was exactly the right
thing to
do. That momentum will continue, despite this setback."

Several weeks ago in what has been called the "midday massacre," Minnis
gutted the senate-passed SB1000 which would have granted critical rights and
protections to Oregon families and locked the bill in a budget committee to
prevent a majority of legislators from forcing the bill to a floor vote. Days
later, a new bill - HB 3508 - gave new hope to the proposal. But just one day
before the Speaker was required to assign the bill to committee, Minnis
suspended
a 140 year old rule which could have allowed a majority of legislators in
the House to vote on the bill before the session ended. With less than a week
left in the session, this political ploy effectively ended hopes of passing
the new civil unions/non-discrimination bill before the legislature's
adjournment.

"Legislative action to protect and recognize all Oregon families and ensure
that all Oregonians can live, work and travel in the state of Oregon free
from discrimination is long overdue," said Basic Rights Oregon Executive
Director Roey Thorpe. "The fact that the Oregon legislature missed an enormous
opportunity this session to take a moral stand against discrimination is an
absolute outrage."
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The Human Rights Campaign is the largest national lesbian, gay, bisexual
and transgender political organization with members throughout the country. It
effectively lobbies Congress, provides campaign support and educates the public
to ensure that LGBT Americans can be open, honest and safe at home, at work
and in the community.

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