A day honoring slain former San Francisco supervisor and gay civil rights leader Harvey Milk is one step closer to becoming a reality with the state Senate's passage of a bill that would commemorate his May 22 birthday as "Harvey Milk Day."

SB 572, authored by state Sen. Mark Leno, would designate May 22 as a "day of special significance" to honor Milk, the first openly gay elected official of any large city in the country, who, along with Mayor George Moscone, was assassinated by former Supervisor Dan White in 1978.

"Harvey Milk is an inspiration to Californians who believe in fairness and equality," Leno said in a statement. "He fought for many of the issues we value today, including access to education, public transportation, affordable housing and protecting the environment. Harvey Milk gave his life for what he believed in, and with that courage and sacrifice he gave hope to an entire generation of gay and lesbian people whose basic humanity and freedom had been denied and dishonored."

The bill still needs the approval of the Assembly and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who last year vetoed a similar bill authored by Leno.

Leno has stated that the bill would not cost the state any money and would not require state workers and school employees to take the day off from work.

Camille Anderson, a spokeswoman for Schwarzenegger, said that the governor has not taken a position on the bill.