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    News and Articles on Domestic Partners



    CanAlaska Uranium Appoints Investor Relations Firm  Sep 1, 2010
    CanAlaska's President and CEO, Mr. Peter Dasler, commented: "CHF's experienced and professional team will provide support to CanAlaska's plan of long term growth in uranium exploration. Five years of research and exploration totaling over $70 million, the majority of which has been funded by the Company's international and domestic partners, have brought us close to our goal of a new uranium discovery in Canada's Athabasca Basin. As we move to strengthen our Company and transition into a year of... (Canada Newswire)

    Target's Off-Target Campaign Contribution  Aug 9, 2010
    Still, gay-rights advocates saw the donation as a betrayal by Target, which has long cultivated support among gays by, for example, providing health benefits to domestic partners and sponsoring Twin Cities Pride, an annual celebration. Since the contribution became public, as required under Minnesota law, calls for a boycott and other protests have mounted on YouTube () and Facebook. (BusinessWeek)

    Voters To Decide On City Domestic Partner Benefits  Aug 9, 2010
    EL PASO, Texas -- El Paso voters will soon decide if domestic partners of city employees will be eligible for health benefits provided by the city ... "City Council wants to waste taxpayers dollars -- really basically pickpocketing the taxpayers to endorse a homosexual lifestyle choice. I think it is just the wrong time, and in our view it's just wrong no matter what the time is," said pastor Tom Brown, an opponent of extending benefits to domestic partners ... But gay rights advocates insist... (KFOXTV.com, TX)

    Nev. Board Slashes State Employee Benefits, Costs  Aug 6, 2010
    The Public Employees' Benefit Program Board approved measures that eliminated insurance for spouses or domestic partners of employee or retirees who have other available coverage through an employer. The cuts will affect 70,000 participants. (ABC News -- Wire)

    Prop. 8 supporters plan appeal before ruling  Aug 5, 2010
    They said a stay would honor the will of the voters and would not harm same-sex couples, who can still register as domestic partners. Walker presided over a nonjury trial in January, the first ever held in a federal court on the issue. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Sports)

    ACLU sues over same-sex property taxes  Aug 5, 2010
    Alaska does not recognize marriage between same-sex domestic partners ... Same-sex domestic partners, however, are allowed only half the exemption because the state considers them roommates instead of married couples, he said. (Juneau Empire)

    Stanford prof: Prop. 8 will be 'unconstitutional'  Aug 5, 2010
    The state would have a hard time explaining its ban on same-sex marriage, since it recognizes gay and lesbian partnerships under the California Domestic Partnership Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003 (AB 205), he said. The law gives registered domestic partners rights and responsibilities similar to those of marriage. (Palo Alto Online, CA)

    Is a Harvard degree worth it?  Aug 1, 2010
    As well as drawing on their experience -- both teach in New York, Hacker at Queens College and Dreifus at Columbia University -- the pair, who are also domestic partners, traveled across America to find the best and worst colleges. They list 10 colleges they like, where teaching is the priority and where students get value for money. (India Times)

    8 Comments  Jul 27, 2010
    Civil unions or domestic partnerships attempt to convey those rights, but often have to address them one by one and even then, are not recognized by other states ... But I'll give you the real difference: when I came into my office and told people that my (same-sex) partner and I were signing up to be domestic partners under the law (California's "civil union"), people said "Oh, that's interesting. So what does that get you, exactly?". (Salon)

    Ariz. domestic-partner law blocked  Jul 24, 2010
    U.S. District Judge John Sedwick granted a temporary injunction that will prevent the state from enacting House Bill 2013, a 2009 law that changed eligibility requirements for insurance benefits in an effort to deny coverage to domestic partners ... "Consequently, the spousal limitation in Section O burdens state employees with same-sex domestic partners more than state employees with opposite-sex domestic partners." ... Gay and lesbian couples are said to represent a small minority of the 893... (AZCentral -- News)

    Etheridge's ex blindsided by divorce filing  Jul 5, 2010
    In a Petition for Dissolution of Domestic Partnership filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Etheridge, 49, sought joint custody of their 3-year-old twins, Johnnie and Miller, and asked that the court not award financial support to Michaels ... Etheridge and Michaels became domestic partners in August 2005. (MSNBC -- News)

    Richey: Passionflowers can ease sleeplessness  Jul 4, 2010
    He suggested it for domestic partners who've grown annoyed with the little things over the years, losing appreciation for the familiar. Cherokee Indians similarly used passionflower as a social beverage. (Athens Banner-Herald)

    Google to reimburse gay, lesbian employees  Jul 2, 2010
    "Google will be grossing-up imputed taxes on health insurance benefits for all same-sex domestic partners in the United States, retroactive to January 1, 2010.". Starting July 1 the company will also provide the equivalent of the Family and Medical Leave Act for all same-sex domestic partners. (San Jose Business Journal, CA)

    Gay business group decries Ariz. boycott  Jul 2, 2010
    The national groups' statement also lashed out at Gov. Jan Brewer, "who last year stripped away earned health-insurance benefits from the same-sex domestic partners of state employees.". Type Size. (AZCentral -- Business)

    Google to pay gay workers more for health care  Jul 2, 2010
    Under federal law, employer-provided health benefits for domestic partners are counted as taxable income, if the partner is not considered a dependent, the newspaper said, noting that the tax owed is based on the value of the partners coverage paid by the employer. Citing a study, the Times said employees with domestic partners will pay about $1,069 more a year in taxes than a married employee with the same coverage ... Careers, Domestic partnership, Google, health in. (MSNBC -- Business)

    State plays God by paying to terminate pregnancies  Jun 29, 2010
    June wrote on Jun 28, 2010 1:41 PM:" Sean Parnell is the brightest spot for humanity that I've seen in Alaska's history ever. Sure, others did us great good too, but none ever stood up for simple human rights like Sean has done. He's the only one to defend women in this state, more than that, the rights of just plain domestic partners regardless of ones views on whom can or should live together as well as the government having no business is culling the herd from either end, the unborn or the... (Wasilla Frontiersman, AK)

    Legal patchwork means gays pay more for less  Jun 28, 2010
    For instance, health insurance benefits for domestic partners are taxed as income, but not for married couples ... Hollander recalled an insurance company that wouldn't recognize domestic partners under homeowners' policies, unless their names were listed on the title to property ... President Obama has directed federal agencies to extend benefits to domestic partners where they can. (MSNBC -- Business)

    Source: Obama to extend family leave to gays  Jun 28, 2010
    He also authorized child-care services and subsidies; more flexibility to use family leave to attend to the needs of domestic partners and their children; relocation benefits; giving domestic partners the same status as family members when federal appointments are made; and access to credit union and other memberships when those are provided to federal workers. Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. (MSNBC -- Business)

    Justices Reject Effort to Keep Petition Signers' Names Secret  Jun 25, 2010
    In mid-2009, Washington enacted a law expanding the rights of state-registered domestic partners. Protect Marriage Washington initiated a petition drive and submitted enough signatures to get a ballot referendum on the law. (Law.com)

    Obama Quietly Expands Gay Rights  Jun 23, 2010
    And federal child-care subsidies can be used by the children of same-sex domestic partners. On Wednesday, the Labor Department is expected to announce that federal officials have rethought the Family and Medical Leave Act, concluding that under the law, a gay federal employee to care for a child with a gay partner. (CBS News -- Politics)

    The Fear Factor  Jun 20, 2010
    This spring, the Supreme Court heard , this time in the state of Washington, who had successfully campaigned to put a referendum on the ballot that would have allowed voters to reverse a state law granting all-but-marriage benefits to domestic partners. After the measure was defeated, the group that had pushed for it asked the Supreme Court to keep private the 138,000 signatures on the ballot petitions. (Slate)

    Giannoulias to amend policy on domestic partners  Jun 13, 2010
    CHICAGO -- Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias is set to amend the state office's domestic partnership policy ... The executive order will recognize same-sex domestic partnerships as equivalent to marriages for treasurer's office employees. (The Pantagraph newspaper)

    Gay federal workers' partners to get benefits  Jun 10, 2010
    Obama on Wednesday directed federal agencies to immediately begin allowing domestic partners and their children some of the same rights available to spouses and children of employees ... Obama said in a statement that while his directive was an "important step on the path to equality," existing federal law prevented him from taking further action to provide same-sex domestic partners with the same benefits offered to heterosexual married couples. (MSNBC -- Politics)

    Employees Same-Sex Partners Gain New Benefits  Jun 4, 2010
    gov News Article: Federal Employees Same-Sex Domestic Partners Gain New Benefits ... Federal Employees Same-Sex Domestic Partners Gain New Benefits ... WASHINGTON, June 3, 2010 President Barack Obama has extended new benefits to same-sex domestic partners of federal employees, including those within the Defense Department. (DOD DefenseLINK)

    Lesbian Congresswoman Splits with Domestic Partner  Jun 4, 2010
    In 2009, the couple registered as domestic partners in Wisconsin, which will now be legally terminated. Baldwin quietly updated her bio on her official government website to delete the line Tammy and her partner, Lauren Azar, live in Madison in a house. (Human Events Online)

    NYC Begins Gay Wedding Ceremonies  Jun 4, 2010
    The city has allowed gay and lesbian couples to register as domestic partners since 1993 but the additional rights conferred upon them lack validity outside city limits. Domestic partnership bestows gay couples more rights, such as bereavement leave, health insurance benefits and hospital visits as family members ... "We are sending a message to Albany that New York City is doing everything we can to recognize the LGBT community ... giving domestic partners benefits, recognizing same sex... (Newsmax)

    IRS adopts state domestic-partner property law  Jun 3, 2010
    In a significant move for same-sex couples, the Internal Revenue Service has decided to recognize California's community property law and treat the income earned by California registered domestic partners as community property income for federal income tax purposes. The decision, which was issued in a private-letter ruling on Friday, reverses a position the IRS took in 2006, when it said California's registered domestic partners should each report on their own federal tax return only the income... (San Francisco Chronicle -- Business)

    Repealing 'don't ask': History or hysteria?  May 31, 2010
    In June 2009, Obama directed federal agencies to extend to federal employees benefits that are granted to domestic partners of federal workers. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton moved to extend many relocation, medical and other benefits to same-sex partners of State Department employees. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Politics)

    Protesters decry Mandels vote on discrimination bill (546)  May 29, 2010
    As undergraduate student body president of The Ohio State University, Mandel supported benefits for domestic partners, both straight and gay unmarried couples, according to an April 2000 article in The Lantern, OSU s student newspaper. Students want it, students deserve it, and the university has a responsibility to provide it, The Lantern quotes him as saying. (Cleveland Jewish News, OH)

    Defendants in Murdered Lawyer Case Opt for Bench Trial  May 13, 2010
    Price and Zaborsky are domestic partners. Click. (Law.com)

    Court eyes protection of petitioners anonymity  Apr 29, 2010
    But voters narrowly backed the law that grants registered domestic partners the same legal rights as married couples. While the campaign was under way, gay rights supporters sought access to the petitions under Washington's open records law. (MSNBC -- Politics)

    High court hears arguments on privacy  Apr 29, 2010
    " Wednesday's case, marking the last arguments for the 2009-10 term, pit the state's interest in open government against the privacy rights of the petition signers. "No person should suffer harassment for participating in our political system," said James Bopp, representing organizers of the 2009 petition drive called Protect Marriage Washington. They had been trying to overturn a state law that enhanced the legal rights of domestic partners. Petition signers, known only as John Does, say they... (USA Today -- News)

    What's Your Sign?  Apr 29, 2010
    In 2009, when Washington state granted domestic partners "everything-but-marriage" rights, a group called Protect Marriage Washington submitted petitions, signed by 138,500 residents, calling for a referendum to repeal the law. Washington's Public Records Act makes those names a matter of public record in the interest of transparency and public inspection. (Slate)

    Justices Skeptical of Petition-Signer Privacy Arguments  Apr 29, 2010
    The case, Doe v. Reed, stems from a 2009 referendum on a Washington state law that expanded the rights of registered domestic partners. Referendum 71 resulted from a petition drive by Protect Marriage Washington and other groups seeking to repeal the law. (Law.com)

    Court hears dispute on petition signers' names  Apr 28, 2010
    WASHINGTON Gay rights opponents are asking the Supreme Court to protect the anonymity of the signers of a petition that sought a vote to overturn Washington state's domestic partnership rights ... But voters narrowly backed the law that grants registered domestic partners the same legal rights as married couples. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- World)

    Wash. Income Tax Initiative To Include Gay Couples  Apr 24, 2010
    -- Supporters of an initiative campaign to tax the earnings of couples making more than $400,000 annually want to make sure the state's domestic partners are taxed at the same rate as married couples ... In addition to making some technical changes, it adds language to ensure that it is consistent with the state's latest expansion to domestic partnerships ... Gay advocates worried that domestic partnerships in which only one person makes more than $200,000 would be unfairly penalized by the tax.... (KIRO TV, WA)

    I heard a lawyer on KFI AM 640 say when a couple lives together (however many) years, they are considered legally married, and if they split up, they have to get a divorce. Is this true? Does this affect Social Security in any way? Thank you for your answer. — Common Law Woman, Brawley'>Common law marriage  Apr 24, 2010
    " oldgrunt wrote on Apr 23, 2010 2:22 PM:" "Instead, Storey told us, legal issues between either registered domestic partners or even non-registered live-in relationships, are subject to contract law, verbal or written" ... Legal issues between registered domestic partners are subject to the application of the provisions of the California Family Law Code, not contract law ... Last, Social Security is not impacted by registered domestic partnership. (El Centro Imperial Valley Press, CA)

    Texas forces gays to stay married  Apr 21, 2010
    Couples who are already registered as domestic partners in the city can convert their registration into a marriage license by paying the $10 fee. Supporters expected the day to be festive. (Salon)

    Hospitals are no place for discrimination: Editorial  Apr 19, 2010
    That will be one result of an order that hospitals honor patients' advance directives, including visitation rights for close friends or domestic partners who are not traditional spouses or other relatives. Obama wrote in a memo to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius that the presence of loved ones is especially important during hospital stays, but widows and widowers with no children may be denied the "support and comfort of a good friend," as are members of religious orders. (The News-Press -- Opinion)

    A big step, but more to go  Apr 17, 2010
    PRESIDENT OBAMA S order that any hospital accepting Medicare or Medicaid must allow visitation to domestic partners is a significant gesture toward creating a more humane, accepting society. The fact that it feels to most Americans like a basic step, a no-brainer, shows just how much progress has been made in the gay rights movement. (Boston Globe)

    Answering readers' income tax questions  Apr 15, 2010
    For details on the state credit, including requirements for married couples and domestic partners, see. Net Worth runs Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Business)

    Gay-rights groups see 2010 Census as progress  Apr 5, 2010
    And Friedes encourages same-sex couples - including thousands registered as domestic partners in Washington state - to "do what's in your hearts" and check the "husband or wife" box if they see themselves as spouses, even if marriage isn't the term they use to describe their relationship ... But same-sex couples can be married, in domestic partnerships, in civil unions or be designated beneficiaries. (The Pantagraph newspaper)

    Google's exit is not exactly a windfall for Baidu  Apr 2, 2010
    But many of the company's domestic partners and advertisers were scared away on fears that Google's sour relationship with the government might impact them ... Google's other domestic partners such as Tom. (People's Daily Online, China)

    Would partners of gay troops get benefits?  Mar 28, 2010
    The State Department extended benefits to gay diplomats, such as the right for their domestic partners to hold diplomatic passports and for paid travel to and from foreign posts. Larry Korb, a senior fellow at the Democratic-led , who served as an assistant secretary of defense in the early 1980s, said what the military would have to work through is similar to what the State Department and some federal agencies have done. (W-USA News, DC)

    Time to fix immigration system, Campos says  Mar 28, 2010
    The clearest option would be granting undocumented immigrants, including LGBT domestic partners, broad access to permanent resident status so they could work and travel freely. It is only when we remove the fear of deportation that we truly remove the burden of second-class citizenship. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Opinion)

    N.Y. Courts May End Civil Unions Performed Elsewhere, Appeals Panel Says  Mar 19, 2010
    For example, the judge noted that under Public Health Law 2805-q[2][a] and 4201[1][c], domestic partners cannot be denied hospital visitation rights and are allowed to determine the disposition of one another's remains. Also, New York City's administrative code defines "domestic partners" as including members of a civil union and forbids civil union partners from entering into a domestic partnership with anyone else, the judge noted. (Law.com)

    Petraeus: Time to consider ending dont ask  Mar 17, 2010
    6) What about transfers and domestic partners and same base assignments, etc. I could go on and on with a list of probably 100 issues that will crop up as this goes down (and it will happen. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)

    Douglas Harrison: Florida Gulf Coast University should provide equal employment benefits for equal work  Mar 17, 2010
    Recently, Florida Gulf Coast University has been debating whether to extend equal employment benefits to domestic partners, gay or straight, of university faculty ... Just this month, University of South Florida became the latest state university to extend equal employment benefits to all unmarried couples in verifiable domestic partnerships. (The News-Press -- Opinion)

    17-year quest for end-of-life law yields reform  Mar 17, 2010
    Unexpected objections surfaced year after year, like protests from the gay community that wanted the law to specifically say that "domestic partners" could be decision-makers; or Catholic groups that wanted the law to protect the "fetus" of pregnant women who had become incapacitated, or pro-choice advocates who disapproved of the word "fetus." ... The law says a close relative or close friend of the patient can be a surrogate and gives standing to domestic partners, and the word fetus was... (Albany Times Union)

    Md. bill seeks to broaden coverage of federal FMLA provisions  Mar 15, 2010
    A bill introduced in the would expand the federal Family and Medical Leave Act to include workers who need unpaid time off to care for ailing domestic partners and the children of their domestic partners ... Several states, including California, Connecticut and Vermont, have extended family leave to same-sex domestic partners ... This bill simply acknowledges that protection is equally important for domestic partners and the children of domestic partners, said Morgan Meneses-Sheets, executive... (Baltimore Business Journal, MD)

    Gay Marriage Legislation Enacted in Washington D.C.  Mar 15, 2010
    In the past, the Council has allowed domestic partnerships and the recognition of same-sex marriages performed in other states. With the District legalizing gay marriage, the initial marriage application fee is waived for those already classified as domestic partners, according to the DC Marriage Bureau s website. (Human Events Online)

    Domestic partner benefits favored at MU  Mar 12, 2010
    COLUMBIA (AP) -- The University of Missouri took preliminary steps Thursday toward expanding employee benefits to cover same-sex domestic partners ... In addition to medical insurance, domestic partners recognized by the university could benefit from tuition discounts and pension rights ... Nearly 60 percent of the nation's Fortune 500 companies -- and 83 of the top 100 -- include domestic partners in their benefit plans, according to the Human Rights Campaign Fund, a Washington-based advocacy... (Jefferson City News Tribune, MO)

    Regents look at insurance plans to cut expenses  Mar 11, 2010
    The system doesn't cover domestic partners. All employees soon will get letters letting them know they'll have a one-month amnesty period in which they can voluntarily drop ineligible dependents. (Athens Banner-Herald)

    DC: Hundreds of Couples Seek Gay Marriage  Mar 11, 2010
    Sinjoyla Townsend, 41, and her partner of 12 years, Angelisa Young, 47, claimed the first spot in line just after 6 a.m. They are already domestic partners in the city but wanted to become legally married ... Eva Townsend and Shana McDavis-Conway had a wedding in St. Croix in 2008 and are registered domestic partners. (CBS News -- US)

    California Focus: Poizner sounds like hes channeling John Paul Jones  Mar 10, 2010
    "I was against gay marriage then, too, but for domestic partners. But as I've worked in Sacramento, I've become more passionately against tax increases and for cutting government spending. I've seen state government in action and that has shaped my thinking.". Poizner insists he will beat Whitman in June because "There will be a small turnout and conservative Republicans will vote for a conservative with a track record. That's me.". (Hanford Sentinal, CA)

    Same-sex marriage becomes legal in D.C.; line forms  Mar 5, 2010
    Sinjoyla Townsend, 41, and her partner of 12 years, Angelisa Young, 47, claimed the first spot in line just after 6 a.m. They are already domestic partners in the city, so they are converting the partnership into a marriage license ... Couples who are already registered as domestic partners in the city can convert their registration into a marriage license by paying the $10 fee. (Pensacola News Journal)

    University Senate | Faculty raise questions over budget, benefits  Mar 4, 2010
    A concern raised over the extension of benefits to opposite-sex domestic partners caused Wednesday's University Senate meeting to drift away from its main purpose. Doug Armstrong, a professor of anthropology, said he did not think the university should extend benefits to opposite-sex domestic partners because they have options that same-sex domestic partners do not, such as the ability to legally marry ... Armstrong's proposed motion to eliminate benefits for opposite-sex domestic partners took... (Daily Orange, NY)

    Professors: Employee benefits not key issue of SU's budget  Mar 2, 2010
    But this prudential judgment calls into question the proposed benefits change, which increases the university's exposure in this very area by adding $600,000 of new health care costs to cover just 100 opposite-sex domestic partners who simply voluntarily choose not to get married. Moreover, the estimate of 100 is likely to be low and the costs therefore significantly underestimated in precisely the one area that we do know is out of control. (Daily Orange, NY)

    Agenda committee requests benefit proposal numbers  Feb 18, 2010
    Some of the proposal's more controversial sections include increasing the co-pay on health care benefits for employee dependents, providing a $1,000 offset to a federal tax on same-sex partners, expanding benefits to include opposite-sex domestic partners and ending tuition benefits for children of State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry employees. "The hard data that one would need to fully understand in order to make a considered judgment about the choices... (Daily Orange, NY)

    Wash. House: Paid Surrogacy Should Be Legal  Feb 16, 2010
    The measure also would give state-registered domestic partners access to the Uniform Parentage Act, a law regulating child support and custody. The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration. (KIRO TV, WA)

    Govt relaxes Press Note 1 norms  Feb 12, 2010
    According to the Press Note 1 guidelines of 2005, foreign companies required NOC from its domestic partners before investing in the same sector. This had created a big hurdle for the foreign companies to diversify their operations in the country. (India Times, India -- Intl Business)

    LEONARD PITTS JR.: A step toward trash for 'don't ask, don't tell'  Feb 11, 2010
    Nine other states - New Jersey, California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Colorado, Maine, Hawaii and Wisconsin - have granted similar rights to gay domestic partners in varying degrees. We already know where this is going. (Fresno Bee -- Opinion)

    Campus issues to be discussed  Feb 10, 2010
    Main points of contention include cutting free tuition to SU for State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry employee dependents, imposing a co-pay for tuition for dependents of SU employees, giving $1,000 to same-sex domestic partners to offset to federal tax and including opposite-sex domestic partners in the benefits. Discussion at the open forum may include the employee benefits proposal, but this is not the purpose of the open forum, said Van Gulick, a member... (Daily Orange, NY)

    Proposed changes to employee benefits bolster inclusion on campus  Feb 8, 2010
    One component of the proposal is to provide same-sex domestic partners with $1,000 to offset the federal tax imposed on them but not applied to heterosexual couples. Cantor said Syracuse University is working toward creating a more inclusive community through the proposed changes. (Daily Orange, NY)

    * US military willing to lift ban on gays  Feb 4, 2010
    Five states and the District of Columbia have adopted laws permitting marriage of gay couples, while nine other states have granted similar rights to gay domestic partners. The publics attitude toward gays and lesbians also has undergone a significant shift. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World Business)

    Defense officials say lift military ban on gays  Feb 3, 2010
    Defense Secretary Robert Gates, center, Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Michael Mullen, right, and Defense Undersecretary Robert Hale, testify on Capitol Hill in Washington, (Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP). (Albany Times Union)

    Signs of culture shift on gay issues  Feb 3, 2010
    Nine other states New Jersey, California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Colorado, Maine, Hawaii and Wisconsin have granted similar rights to gay domestic partners in varying degrees. A Pew poll taken last year found that 59 percent of Americans favor allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military, up from 52 percent in 1994. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Crime)

    'Don't ask, don't tell': Times, attitudes have changed  Feb 3, 2010
    Another nine states - New Jersey, California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Colorado, Maine, Hawaii and Wisconsin - have granted various degrees of similar rights to gay domestic partners. The public's attitude toward gays and lesbians has undergone a shift. (Athens Banner-Herald)

    Legal issues taken into account for employee benefits proposal  Feb 1, 2010
    One proposed benefit enhancement included in the Sustainable Benefits report issued last week would provide a supplement of up to $1,000 to employees who have same-sex domestic partners enrolled in the university's medical plan. This proposed benefit was intended to recognize a tax impact that affects same-sex domestic partners but does not affect employee opposite-sex spouses who receive Syracuse University medical benefits. (Daily Orange, NY)

    Pentagon starts clock on lifting gay ban  Jan 30, 2010
    He noted a bill is pending that would extend to domestic partners benefits such as granting Social Security survivor payments and allowing hospital visitation. Obama said: "My hope is we can get it done.". (Fresno Bee -- Local)

    Boies Lands Verbal Punches on Ballot Measure Backer During Proposition 8 Trial  Jan 22, 2010
    After Boies had Tam acknowledge his support for domestic partnerships and civil unions, he had brought up a letter in which Tam claimed civil unions opened the door in Sweden to marriage between siblings ... "I said I support domestic partnership, not civil unions," Tam said ... Tam: "I don't know about civil unions, I support domestic partnership.". (Law.com)

    Mayor: Gay Marriage Views 'Evolved'  Jan 20, 2010
    Lee Badgett, who also directs research for a gay-related think tank at the University of California, Los Angeles, added that research showed gay couples preferred marriage to taking advantage of domestic partnership laws ... Charles Cooper, another lawyer for Proposition 8 backers, countered that same number of couples registered as domestic partners in 2009 as 2008, even though same-sex marriage was legal in California during a four-month window before voters approved Proposition 8 in 2008 ...... (KSBW 8, CA)

    Letters: Turn the tables to find real equality  Jan 19, 2010
    The Proposition 8 proponents claim that "domestic partners" have equivalent rights and privileges as do "married partners." ... 8 proponents domestic partnerships, and give the Prop ... Then we'll see how "equitable" they'll claim domestic partnerships and marriage really are. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Opinion)

    Witness: Gay marriage made her feel like family  Jan 17, 2010
    Until then, they had been domestic partners. Zia's testimony was intended to show that California's domestic partnership law, which grants same-sex couples the rights of marriage but not the title or the federal benefits, is not an acceptable substitute. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Business)

    Supreme Court to Consider Privacy Claims  Jan 16, 2010
    The high court will consider whether Washington state officials can release more than 138,500 names on a petition seeking a vote on overturning the state's domestic partnership rights ... "Opponents of domestic partnership laws argue they would be subject to harassment if their names are put on the Internet, which would ultimately discourage people from saying what they really believe on controversial issues." ... In Washington state, Referendum 71 asked voters to approve or reject the so-called... (CBS News -- Politics)

    Couples tell of toll from state gay marriage ban as Prop. 8 trial begins  Jan 12, 2010
    He questioned what "disabilities" gays suffer from not being allowed to marry, and why registering as domestic partners is not an acceptable alternative. He said gay people hadn't had the right to marry "very long," and asked whether that "doesn't make a difference.". (Fresno Bee -- Local)

    Who gets property after a death?  Jan 10, 2010
    Assuming you are not registered domestic partners, your partner will inherit your property only if you have named him or her in your will. Q: I am the executor of my deceased aunt's estate. (Fresno Bee -- Business)


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