Kansas AG:
Ordinance doesn't violate same-sex marriage ban

Kansas attorney general Paul Morrison said Friday that a proposed Lawrence city ordinance that would allow unmarried heterosexual and same-sex couples to register their partnerships would not be in violation of a 2005 amendment to the Kansas constitution that bans same-sex marriage, reports the Associated Press. Morrison wrote in a 17-page opinion that while the Lawrence ordinance would allow couples in Kansas to register their partnerships, it would not offer any legal rights to marriage. However, the attorney general further stated that the proposed ordinance contains a section that would allow couples living outside Lawrence to register their partnerships, something Morrison said could exceed the city's sovereignty. "Should the city of Lawrence impose a city residency requirement, we believe that the ordinance would pass muster," Morrison wrote. Although Morrison's legal opinion isn't binding, discussions concerning the ordinance caused a legislator to propose a bill that would ban registration of domestic partnerships in Kansas. However, it is not yet known how the city commission will handle a domestic-partnership registry. Outgoing commissioner Mike Rundle said a decision won't occur until two new members to the five-member commission take office this week. "It was our intent to make this process and policy such that it was not in violation of the constitutional amendment," Rundle told the Associated Press. "Our policy is not going to put any requirement on any private firms that they shall provide domestic-partner benefits." A domestic-partnership registry would allow an individual access to his or her partner's employer-provided health benefits, Rundle said. Companies extending these benefits often accept registration as proof of a relationship and require more detailed documentation without it, Rundle added. Morrison's staff said his opinion shouldn't be seen as his endorsing domestic-partnership registries; rather, he was simply interpreting the law. (The Advocate)