Moral bills had tough time this year

Just two years ago, the Utah Legislature took a clear moral stand by sending a constitutional ban of same-sex marriage to voters.

Last year, senators cited moral concerns when they voted down efforts to give limited benefits to those who can't legally marry.

However, this year proved to be a tough one for moral bills, many of which were backed by the sponsors of the 2004 marriage amendment, Rep. LaVar Christensen, R-Draper, and Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan.

Buttars views defending morality, which he says is under continual attack in today's society, as a primary job of the state.

"Utah should be leading the whole nation in morality issues, in my opinion," Buttars said. "And we should be protecting morality and values; that's what's made America great."

Buttars' SB97 this year sought to give school boards permission, without fear of expensive lawsuits, to just say no to students wanting to start clubs based on human sexuality or bigotry.

Though the bill didn't explicitly target gay-straight alliances, the public dialogue and legislative debates on that and the nearly identical HB393, sponsored by Rep. Aaron Tilton, R-Springville, did.

Backed by the powerful conservative Utah Eagle Forum, SB97 appeared to have momentum when it came to the House for final debate. But time ran out on the 2006 Legislature before it could be heard. Tilton's bill never made it to the floor.

Christensen, apparently troubled by a custody case involving a former lesbian couple pending before the Utah Supreme Court, sponsored HB148 to ensure custody or visitation isn't awarded against a parent's wishes. HB148 barely passed in the Senate, with President John Valentine, R-Orem, casting the deciding vote.

Another bill Christensen sponsored, HB327, to keep public entities from using taxpayer funds to pay for benefits for unmarried partners of employees, was gutted by the Senate. It died in the final minutes of the session when Christensen didn't ask the House to approve the Senate's changes.

And while one bill to require parental consent for minors' abortions passed, a second to require informing women that late-term abortions may cause pain in fetuses died in a Senate committee.

Sen. Scott McCoy, D-Salt Lake, who led a campaign against the marriage amendment, sees this session as a sign that lawmakers "are reasonable people" and that the gay rights advocacy group Equality Utah is gaining some clout.

"They are willing to take a step back and say, 'OK, wait a minute, we need to be careful when we are dealing with real people and real families,' " McCoy said. "We need to not rush in and act on purely ideological and moral grounds."