Supporters of civil unions in New Hampshire say that the bill has the support it needs to pass the Senate and head to the governor's desk.

The New Hampshire Freedom to Marry Coalition said yesterday that all 14 Democrats in the 24-member Senate plan to vote for the bill. One or two Republicans may also support the bill, said Rep. Mo Baxley, an Andover Democrat who serves as executive director for the Freedom to Marry Coalition. The group supports establishing civil unions as a step toward full marriage for same-sex couples.

Last week, the civil unions bill passed the House, 243-129. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a public hearing on the bill yesterday, drawing more than 300 people, roughly two-thirds of whom opposed civil unions. The committee will vote on the bill tomorrow morning, which means it is likely to come to the Senate floor for a full vote a week from today.

Senate President Sylvia Larsen, a Concord Democrat, said she had yet not polled Senate Democrats, adding that the Democrats don't plan to discuss the issue as a caucus until the judiciary committee sends it to the floor. However, she said she wasn't surprised at the Freedom to Marry Coalition claim that all 14 Democrats were on board.

"I think many members of the caucus recognize the importance of being a state that does not discriminate against the legal rights of others - the legal rights and responsibilities," Larsen said. "We have a smart and sensitive group in our membership, and I think they'll make a decision after they've heard all the points."

The civil unions bill would grant same-sex couples all the "rights, responsibilities and obligations" of heterosexual marriage, differing in name only. The bill, if approved, would make New Hampshire the fourth state in the country to establish civil unions, after Vermont, Connecticut and New Jersey. A few other states, including Maine, allow same-sex couples to gain many rights through a domestic-partnership registry but do not allow civil unions. Only Massachusetts allows full marriage for same-sex couples.

In New Hampshire, supporters and opponents alike expect the bill to pass and are looking to Gov. John Lynch, a second-term Democrat, to see what he will do. Lynch, who has not yet taken a position on civil unions, could sign the bill, veto it or allow it to become law without his signature.

Yesterday, civil union opponents at the hearing distributed preprinted postcards for people to mail to Lynch urging him to veto the bill if it passes.

Lynch opposes gay marriage. He has publicly supported extending certain benefits to same-sex couples in the past but has not weighed in on the civil unions bill.

"He's open to discussion, and he'll be discussing the bill with lawmakers," Colin Manning, a spokesman for Lynch, said yesterday. He did not say whether that discussion would occur before or after the Senate votes on the bill.

The Senate Judiciary Committee held its hearing in Representatives Hall to accommodate the crowd. Two hundred and eleven people signed their names in opposition to the civil unions bill, while 94 signed their names in favor. About two dozen lawmakers and several dozen members of the public also testified during the 4½-hour hearing.

Most of the lawmakers who spoke urged support for the bill, while a majority of the members of the public who spoke opposed the bill and accused lawmakers of misreading the masses. Supporters of civil unions said the opponents were a vocal and motivated minority that did not reflect recent opinion polls, which have shown the wider public to be divided or in support of civil unions.

The testimony yesterday was similar to what lawmakers heard when the bill moved through the House, and it also reflected the debate on the House floor last week - supporters, many of whom see civil unions as a step toward marriage, said it was an issue of fairness and equality. Opponents, who worry that civil unions would lead to same-sex marriage, said the bill would degrade New Hampshire's moral climate and threaten traditional heterosexual marriage. Some opponents also said civil unions would discriminate because they would be open only to same-sex couples and not to any two adults, such as siblings or friends, who want to secure legal rights and benefits together.

The testimony yesterday also had a decidedly religious bent. Several pastors and religious leaders testified on both sides of the issue. Opponents said condoning same-sex marriage would violate Christian beliefs. Supporters said they held a different understanding of Christianity that favored equality. They also said religion should not dictate state policy.

The civil unions bill includes a clause reaffirming the separation of church and state: "Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require a minister or clergywoman to solemnize or perform a civil union."

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