Gay civil rights bill sent to likely death

OLYMPIA – Two conservative Democrats helped Senate Republicans derail the latest attempt by the Legislature to pass a gay civil rights bill, sending it to a hostile committee where it is likely to die.

The Senate’s procedural move took majority Democrats by surprise, coming during floor action on noncontroversial bills. The Democrats hold a 26-23 advantage, but the move succeeded when conservative Democrats Jim Hargrove, of Hoquiam, and Tim Sheldon, of Potlatch, joined Republicans in shunting the bill off to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The critics argued that the bill should never have been routed through the Senate Financial Institutions, Housing and Consumer Protection Committee, which approved the bill last month.

The House passed the bill in February, 61-37.

“The actions taken today are stall tactics against a bill that is seeking to ensure that principles of fairness and justice are available to everyone under the law,” Rep. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, the bill’s sponsor, said in a written statement. “This will not stop our efforts. This bill is long past due.”

The bill, which would ban discrimination against gays and lesbians in jobs, housing and insurance, has been introduced – and rejected – annually for nearly 30 years in the Legislature.

Sheldon said people in his blue-collar district don’t support the bill and “I’m representing their wishes.”

Senate GOP Floor Leader Luke Esser, of Bellevue, said Tuesday’s move was just a procedural one, noting that when the bill came up in past years, it was before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Esser had tried earlier to get the bill moved to that committee, but failed.

He acknowledged that while he doesn’t support the bill, that doesn’t mean other Republicans wouldn’t vote for it if it eventually got to the floor.

“This was just a matter of sending the bill to the right committee,” he said.

But the action was widely viewed as a killing motion.

Because Hargrove sits on the Judiciary Committee, the 5-4 advantage held by Democrats is evaporated and the Republicans can keep the bill bottled up. Further, it’s already past the deadline for Senate committees to approve House bills.

Another Democratic member of the panel, Sen. Marilyn Rasmussen, of Eatonville, also said that even though she voted against the procedural move, she might oppose the bill.

She said she was afraid that the bill, as written, left the door open for gay marriage.

“The bill goes way too far,” she said.

Presuming the bill dies in committee, the only other option left for backers would be to find two Republicans to cross over and pull the bill back to the floor for a vote.

“The reality is, it’s not over,” said Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, D-Spokane.

Sen. Darlene Fairley, D-Lake Forest Park, chairwoman of the panel that previously approved the bill, said Tuesday’s vote was disappointing.

“Discrimination is that important to them? I find that extremely sad,” she said.

Gov. Christine Gregoire has said she would sign the measure into law if the Legislature passes it. Gregoire’s legislative director, Marty Brown, said the governor was “very disappointed” with what happened, but noted that the bill could still make it to the floor.

“Nothing’s ever dead until they go home, but it makes it a lot harder,” he said.