HARTFORD, Conn.—State figures in Connecticut show there has been a significant drop in the number of same-sex couples entering into civil unions in the past year.

After civil unions for gay couples became legal in Connecticut on Oct. 1, 2005, there were 649 civil unions during the last three months of that year.

The Connecticut Department of Public Health said that in 2006 there were 729 civil unions. However, as of the end of October this year, just 372 civil unions were recorded in Connecticut.

The co-chairman of the Connecticut Legislature’s judiciary committee, state Rep. Michael P. Lawlor, said the drop-off in the number of civil unions in Connecticut doesn’t surprise him.

But Lawlor said he also believes “a certain number of people are holding off for marriage.” He said if gay marriage were declared constitutional by the state’s supreme court or the legislature acts to legalize it, he would expect to see another surge of same-sex couples seeking to be united.