By Matt Simonette

Staff writer

Nearly a year after it was introduced into the state legislature, a bill making Illinois the first state in the Midwest to offer civil unions is still waiting to be heard on the House floor.

HB 1826, introduced last winter by Rep. Greg Harris (D-Chicago), confers upon gays and lesbians in the state the right to enter into civil unions and further states that religious institutions will not be compelled to perform such unions.   

Harris had earlier introduced legislation that would have allowed gay and lesbians Illinoisans to marry, but it did not make it out of committee. HB 1826 now waits for a vote on the House floor, but its passage has been hindered by the legislative quagmire that overtook Springfield last year.

For many months Harris and gay rights lobbyists have been trying to convey the urgency of the bill to his colleagues in the legislature.

“The hardest part of the process is building consensus,” Harris said.

Lobbying efforts in both houses have drummed up “percentage-wise about the same amount of support,” said Harris. “But in both houses it’s that last handful (of votes) that’s like pulling teeth.”

“We have made tremendous progress,” Harris said. “I have a lot more support than I ever thought I would have. (But) I still have people tell me, ‘We just don’t hear from people in our district that this is important to them.’”

So Harris is urging supporters of the bill to ask friends and family, especially those living in the collar counties and Downstate, to let their legislators know why civil unions are important for Illinois GLBTs.

“What would win or lose this issue, particularly outside the city of Chicago, is people getting in touch with their elected officials,” Harris said. “If that doesn’t happen, (the bill) will get lost in the shuffle.”