A GOP-controlled state legislative panel in Colorado killed a bill
Monday that would have given gay and lesbian couples the same rights as
their heterosexual counterparts. Had the bill to approve same-sex civil
unions made it to the state House floor, it was expected to pass with
the support of Democrats and a handful of Republicans.
The Denver Post
reports that Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper had called a special
legislative session to debate the bill after the regular legislative
session ended last week with no progress on the measure. But GOP leaders
funneled the proposal to the House State, Veterans and Military Affairs
Committee, which is known as a “kill committee” because its members are
in safe seats and are unlikely to face political consequences for
preventing a bill from reaching the floor. The panel lived up to its
billing, voting to kill it 5-4 along party lines.
