NH Civil Unions at Midnight; OR Domestic Partnership on Hold

December 31, 2007

CONCORD, N.H—(Concord, New Hampshire) New Hampshire is becoming the fourth state to legalize civil unions and about 20 couples decided to be the first to take advantage of the new law with a late-night ceremony on the Statehouse steps.

Jennifer Major of Gilmanton, who helped organize the group ceremony, said festivities would begin at about 11 p.m. Monday with poetry readings and live music. The civil unions can take place once the law takes effect at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.

Major and her partner, Kelley Morris, planned to be among the couples saying I do.

Every single night … I come home from work and say 'Guess what we're doing on Monday?' She says 'Getting marriaged,' Major said last week. We have to keep pinching ourselves because it's Monday, not next Monday or two weeks from Monday.

Snow and freezing temperatures were forecast during the night. I don't have any winter coats with rhinestones and glitter, so I'm just going to dress warmly, she said.

At the bill signing in May, Gov. John Lynch called civil unions for same-sex couples a matter of conscience. How could any one of us look into the eyes of our neighbors, our friends or our loved ones if we continued to deny them these basic legal protections? he said.

New Hampshire joins Vermont, Connecticut and New Jersey in legalizing civil unions. Massachusetts is the only state that allows same-sex marriage.

The new law says civil unions will provide same-sex couples with the rights, responsibilities and obligations of marriage, except the name.

It also says New Hampshire will recognize legal same-sex unions from other states, but a group of conservative Republicans in the Legislature is working to undo that part of the law. A hearing is scheduled for Jan. 24.

The state estimated 3,500 to 4,000 civil unions will be performed in the first year.

Although New Hampshire's same-sex families will soon be able to protect themselves, at least at the state level, Oregon couples will not be so lucky.

PORTLAND, OR—A federal judge on Friday placed on hold a state domestic partnership law that was set to take effect Jan. 1, pending a February hearing.

The law would give some spousal rights to same-sex couples.

Opponents asked U.S. District Judge Michael W. Mosman to intercede after the Oregon secretary of state's office ruled in October that they had failed to collect enough valid signatures on a referendum to block the law.

The Oregon measure covers benefits related to inheritance rights, child-rearing and custody, joint state tax filings, joint health, auto and homeowners insurance policies, visitation rights at hospitals and others. It does not affect federal benefits for married couples, including Social Security and joint filing of federal tax returns.

After the Legislature approved the domestic partnership law this year, gay rights opponents launched an effort to collect enough signatures to suspend the law and place it on the November 2008 ballot for a statewide vote.

But state elections officials said this fall that the effort fell 116 valid signatures short of the 55,179 needed to suspend the law.

In court Friday, Austin Nimocks, a lawyer for Alliance Defense Fund, which opposes the measure, said the state's review process was flawed, disenfranchising citizens who had signed petitions.

The state's largest gay rights group, Basic Rights Oregon, criticized the judge's decision.

It's unfair our families once again are bearing the brunt of this ongoing struggle, said Jeana Frazzini, a spokesman for the group.

Eight other states have approved spousal rights in some form for same-sex couples - Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Maine, California, Washington and Hawaii. Massachusetts is the only state that allows same-sex couples to marry.

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