Utah Republicans
reject domestic-partner benefits

Salt Lake County council members have rejected extending domestic-partner benefits to county employees by a vote of five Republicans to four Democrats. The GOP opponents cited the voter-approved constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. "We did get a semblance of this in November's vote. Our community did tell us then and there--the nuclear family and this definition of marriage ought to have a different classification in our society," councilman Cort Ashton said at Tuesday's meeting. Councilman Michael Jensen says the amendment was too tightly linked to the issue of extending benefits to go against the majority of voters. "It pains me to send any message to someone--if they take it--that we don't value them," said a tearful Mark Crockett, the GOP councilman that benefit supporters had hoped might provide the swing vote to pass the proposal. Democratic council members Jenny Wilson and Joe Hatch say the question of insurance coverage for domestic partners is about fairness, not marriage. "This is a low-cost way to reward our gay and lesbian employees who are in long-term relationships. When we carve them out, we really are disadvantaging those folks," Wilson said. Under Wilson's proposal, county employees' domestic partners and their children would have been eligible for the same benefits granted families of married employees, including health, dental, and life insurance and extended funeral leave and sick leave to care for a dependent. Those benefits would have been extended to domestic partners who have shared the same residence for a year and are jointly responsible for living expenses. "Those who have an 'alternative lifestyle' go every day to their job as deputies and firefighters and work their hearts out for this county," Democratic councilman Randy Horiuchi said. "To deny the same kind of rights and benefits is dead wrong in the issue of fairness. Today is a vote on how we treat our employees." Jan Donchess, a 20-year county employee and head of the county's Gay and Lesbian Employees Association, says employees are given only five hours of funeral leave for friends and domestic partners and cannot take sick leave to care for their partners. Married couples are allowed up to 12 weeks of leave to care for spouses and children. Based on comparisons with private companies that offer partner benefits, Wilson says he expects between 1% and 2% of employees would have been eligible. (AP)