When the legislation goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2010, New Hampshire will be the sixth state in the nation to allow same-sex marriage.
The state Senate voted 14-10 to pass the legislation Wednesday morning, and the House passed the bill 198-176 Wednesday afternoon.
"We are standing up for the liberties of same-sex couples by making clear that they will receive the same rights, responsibilities and respect under New Hampshire law," Lynch said in a Wednesday evening press conference.
The same-sex marriage legislation has been in limbo for over a month.
Although the state House and the Senate passed the original bill in April, Lynch said he would veto it without further protections for religious groups that oppose same-sex marriage.
On May 20, the House rejected Lynch's recommended protections by a close margin.
The House and Senate later agreed on the compromise bill that was passed by both chambers on Wednesday.
"Each religious organization, association, or society has exclusive control over its own religious doctrine, policy, teachings and beliefs regarding who may marry within their faith," the amendment states.
It also says religiously affiliated organizations that serve charitable or educational purposes, such as some private schools and nonprofit groups, are not required to provide benefits to same-sex spouses of employees.
"Those provisions do dilute [the legislation] a bit, but I think in the end the benefits outweigh those costs," Dartmouth GSX President Jennifer Schuster '09 said in an interview with The Dartmouth. "While it would have been wonderful if the bill passed in it's original form, I can understand Governor Lynch's concern for the wide range of opinions among his constituents."
While Lynch has said that he personally opposes gay marriage, he said on Wednesday that he felt he had to respect the democratic process that had brought the bill before him, and that he had heard "compelling arguments that a separate system is not an equal system."
Kevin Smith, executive director of Cornerstone Policy Research, a New Hampshire-based conservative policy research think tank, said that Lynch's decision represented a "betrayal" of the New Hampshire residents who voted for him.
"I think Lynch has been misleading the voters all along," Smith said in an interview with The Dartmouth. "If the governor says he's personally opposed to same-sex marriage, but is going to listen to what the legislature said, what does that say about his personal beliefs?"
The provisions protecting religious organizations were "just political cover for the governor and some legislators who wanted to break the promises they made to their voters," Smith said.
"The exceptions agreed to in the compromise bill don't protect individuals who run a private business and have deeply held religious beliefs opposed to gay marriage," he added.
The legislation will also hurt Democrats in the next election cycle, Smith said.
"The process in which the Legislature has rammed this legislation through from the very beginning reeks of backroom deals and a subversion of the legislative process," he said. "It has certainly tainted the validity of the gay marriage bill in the minds of many citizens."
Smith and other opponents of same-sex marriage have been critical of Democratic leaders, including state Senate President Sylvia Larsen, D-Concord, for removing Sen. Shelia Roberge, R-Bedford, from the conference committee tasked with negotiating the language of the compromise amendment. Roberge opposed the version of the amendment the other legislators had agreed on, and the amendment needed unanimous support in order to pass. Roberge was replaced by Sen. Matthew Houde '91, D-Grafton, who voted for the amendment.
Roberge was the only member of the conference committee to propose a "freedom of religious conscience" clause that would have extended the protections of the compromise amendment to private individuals and businesses. She also called for a non-binding, state-wide referendum on same-sex marriage.
Related articles:
Gay marriage bill faces setback (May 21, 2009)
Comm. approves gay marriage bill changes (May 20, 2009)
Gov. proposes changes to bill (May 15, 2009)
House delivers final marriage bill to Gov. (May 7, 2009)
N.H. Senate passes marriage bill (April 30, 2009)
N.H. House approves same-sex marriage (March 30, 2009)
