Hawaii is the next state set to tackle legalizing same-sex marriage according to The Washington Post.
"I think we can put together something that can achieve a solid majority, that will give us the opportunity to establish marriage equity in the state of Hawaii commensurate with the recent Supreme Court decisions, and will satisfy and resolve the issues that are presently before the appeals court on the mainland," Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D) told a gathering of state Democrats The Post reported.
Hawaii State House Democrats are expected to meet Wednesday to gauge the overall stance on the matter.
According to The Post, Abercrombie will have a special legislative session to handle the details this fall, should there be enough support, and if leaders in the legislative body can come to a general consensus about the language of the law strong enough to meet the demands of the court system. The state's legislature will depend on Abercrombie holding the meeting since the two sides don't have the "two-thirds threshold" required to have pass an act themselves The Post reported.
Abercrombie's chief of staff, Blake Oshiro, is working on the details of the language The Star-Advertiser reported. State Senate leadership said they have the votes to pass a same-sex marriage bill according to The Post.
Democrats control the House by a 44-7 margin, and hold 24 of 25 seats in the Senate.
The state put a constitutional amendment into law in 1998, which gave the legislature power to call marriage a heterosexual union The Post reported. This was partially turned back in 2013 making civil unions between same-sex couples legal.
Hawaii became the 50th state of the U.S. on August 21, 1969 according to encyclopediabritannica.com. It joined as a constituent state.
