Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Vote 'NO' on IL-SB1716 Civil Unions Bill

Sent to: Pat Quinn (D-IL), James F. Clayborne Jr. (D-IL 57th), Thomas Holbrook (D-IL 113th)

I urge you to vote "NO" on the 'Civil Unions' bill (SB1716). Please inform me of your position on this bill before casting a vote.

Section 10 of this bill states that any partner in a civil union shall be legally considered a "spouse" and "family." Proponents of this bill are trying to redefine the very meaning of marriage and family

Voters in 31 states have rejected the redefinition of marriage and family at the ballot box. The people in Illinois are no different.

Cardinal Francis George and the Catholic Conference of Illinois issued a strong statement in a press release last week saying that "the public understanding of marriage will be negatively affected by passage of a bill that ignores the natural fact that sexual complementarity is at the core of marriage."

Civil union legislation would force employers to grant registered same-sex cohabiters the benefits currently provided for spouses of married employees.

Such legislation undermines the unique position which marriage holds in our society as the foundation of the family.

It also will cost taxpayers to add unrelated persons to health insurance coverage for public employees and as dependents under workers compensation benefits.

And it will force employee benefit costs to rise in the private sector.

Additionally, based on experience with the impact of such legislation in other states, this corruption of Illinois's official treatment of marriage will likely lead to mandates on schools to teach quasi-spousal relationships as equivalent to marriage.

This legislation will also open the floodgates to discrimination and civil rights lawsuits. Religious liberty and freedom of conscience will diminish for Illinois residents.

SB-1716 is a jobs killer and an added burden for taxpayers. It will negatively affect our state's moral climate and our children's understanding of the family.

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