South Florida officials say domestic partner benefits won't change
Local government leaders don't plan to retreat from offering domestic partnership benefits in the wake of voters' decision last week to rewrite the Florida Constitution to outlaw gay marriage and anything similar to it.
The governments and school districts of Broward and Palm Beach counties offer health insurance coverage to domestic partners of their employees, as do a handful of cities. Both counties also have partnership registries that grant unmarried gay and straight couples certain visitation and decision-making rights.
Some officials are asking their attorneys to see whether steps should be taken to fend off possible legal attacks that contend the benefits violate the gay-marriage ban. Supporters of the constitutional amendment say they have no plans to challenge domestic partnership benefits, but governments in other states have been forced to reconsider what they offer after voters approved similar initiatives.
