Civil Union Law Enactment Happy Day for Area Gay Couples

For John Dalton, today is a happy day.

It is a day he has been waiting years for, the Elgin man said. At the stroke of midnight, his California marriage to Rich Jacobs will be recognized in Illinois as a civil union.

Illinois’ civil union law took effect today, giving gay families the legal same rights as heterosexual families in the state. It becomes one of a dozen states extending significant legal protection to same-sex couples, according a Huffington Post story.

“It’s about time,” said Dalton, of the civil union legislation.

Dalton is Kane County’s first openly gay man to be elected to office. He won a seat on the Elgin Community College board in the spring.

He and Jacobs have been together for over 19 years and had waited many years in hopes it would become legal in Illinois to be married.

“We lost patience about eight or nine years ago,” Dalton said. “We decided to have a religious ceremony to be married in the eyes of our family, friends and the church. We were legally married in California in 2008.”

Under Illinois’ new law, that marriage will be recognized here and enables the two to have many of the rights that come with traditional marriage. Those rights include the power to decide medical treatment for an ailing partner and the right to inherit a partner’s property, according to the Huffington Post story.

Dalton has not heard of anyone who will be applying for a civil union license in Kane County, but he’s sure there will be a line.

McHenry County Clerk Katherine Schultz expects to issue civil union licenses Wednesday morning given the number of calls she’s received about the new law. She said there will be people who will want to be the first to obtain the new license.

“We’ve had phone calls wanting to know when it (the law) will take effect,” she said.

Any questions she received about the law she has passed onto the McHenry County State’s Attorney to clarify the law for her staff.

The office has received the paper work, which is similar to a marriage license, and the staff has been trained, Schultz said.

A civil union license, like a marriage license, is good for 60 days and can be used the following day.