April 23, 2012 07:15 PM UTC

Pat Steadman's Civil Unions Bill to Senate Floor this Week

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• by: Colorado Pols

Colorado State Senator Pat Steadman has been leading the fight in the Colorado State Capitol on two separate issues: crafting together a state budget and civil unions rights for LGBT couples.

While the budget may have taken center stage for the past few weeks, the civil unions bill is set to hit the Senate floor this week.

From Outfront Colorado:

DENVER – The Colorado state Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday approved SB-2, a bill to recognize same-sex civil unions. It passed 5-4 on a party-line vote with all Democrats voting yes and all Republicans voting no. The bill will be debated and voted on in the full Senate next week.

According to Public Policy Polling, 62 percent of Colorado voters support the bill, while 53% of Colorado voters say same-sex marriage should be legal. Only 22 percent said that there should be no legal recognition whatsoever of gay couples.

In addition, “the divide on the issue of civil unions is generational, with voters under 30 supporting gay marriage by a 77-23 margin.”

Public Policy Polling concludes that this “should be a real warning sign to the GOP that continuing to tack right on this issue is going to significantly hurt its ability to appeal both to the next generation of voters and to swing voters who are somewhere between moderate and liberal on social issues.”

The bill should sail through the Senate, given the Democratic majority and willingness of some GOP legislators to respond to public opinion on the issue.

Its future in the House, however, is much less certain. Even if the bill is once again defeated by the House GOP, it’s safe to say that Pat Steadman will run the same legislation session after session until it’s signed into law.  

Sometimes persistence is the best antidote to hardheadedness.