In the AP/BND:

In April, an Illinois Senate committee voted down an amendment to the Civil Unions Act that would have allowed faith-based social services agencies to keep their existing policies.

Sen. Bill Haine, D-Alton ... called it a "reasonable" resolution that would have allowed the organizations to uphold their long-held beliefs.

"These are children that are wards of the state, and the state has an interest in them being well-cared for," Haine said. "Catholic Charities and Lutheran Family Services and similar groups provide excellent care. To smash the system to smithereens on the basis that a few people want to adopt from these agencies that are in civil unions, to me is unreasonable."