House panel OKs hearings for 3 gay-rights bills

At least a few of the "Common Ground" gay-rights bills will be heard in a House committee after the bills advanced Friday morning out of the House Rules Committee, despite objections by hard-core conservatives.

HB267, HB160 and HB288 will go to various House standing committees. Already, HB160 has been scheduled for a Tuesday morning hearing, and the others will be scheduled at the prerogative of the committee chairmen — although most committees hear all of the bills sent to them.

"I'm very happy, they should be heard," said House Minority Leader David Litvack, D-Salt Lake, who made a rare appearance in the Rules Committee meeting. Rules is a sifting committee and doesn't take public comment.

But Rep. Carl Wimmer, R-Herriman, gave his feelings on HB288. Asked why he made a motion to hold the adoption amendments, Wimmer said, "I don't like it."

Earlier this week, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. made big headlines when he formally endorsed the "Common Ground" initiative bills, which seek to provide more rights to "non-traditional" families, like gays, lesbians or other families not headed by a married man and woman.

Huntsman and other "Common Ground" supporters say they are not trying to impose gay marriage, which was banned in Utah through a constitutional amendment approved by voters in 2004.

HB267, by Rep. Chris Johnson, D-Salt Lake, says that gay people can not be discriminated against because of their sexual orientation.

HB160, by Rep. Jen Seelig, D-Salt Lake, outlines a joint declaration of support, specifically detailing who can have a say in a person's medical treatment if the patient can't make those decisions himself.

And HB288, by Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck, D-Salt Lake, makes small — but some say important — changes to adoption law. It says it is generally best to place a child in a legal marriage situation, but removes language about a single adult cohabiting not being the best situation.

That leaves open, conservatives say, to one member of a gay couple better being able to adopt.

Voting against the "Common Ground" initiative bills were Wimmer and Reps. Mike Noel, R-Kanab; Patrick Painter, R-Nephi; and Mike Morley, R-Spanish Fork.

But the two Rules Committee chairmen, Reps. Greg Hughes, R-Draper, and Ben Ferry, R-Corinne, both voted along with Rep. Kory Holdaway, R-Taylorsville, with Democrats to move the bills out for public hearing.

A Senate "Common Ground" bill has already been killed in a Senate hearing committee. And another was pulled by its House sponsor.

"We're completely thrilled," said Will Carlson, Equality Utah's public policy director. "It's a lot easier to marginalize the gay community when you just think about this outside idea of gay. When you start meeting people — parents and families and people who have been fired from their jobs — it makes it a real issue. And it's a real issue that we're trying to resolve here."Contributing: Aaron Falk

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