Florida activists step up efforts to pass statewide domestic partnership bill
Florida LGBT activists have not wasted any time in making their mark in the new year. Lawmakers heard testimony during a public hearing last week on a newly re-introduced statewide domestic partnership bill.
State Sen. Eleanor Sobel (D-Hallandale) introduced Senate Bill 1642 while state Rep. Richard Steinberg (D-Miami Beach) brought the companion House Bill 1067. The measure would enact a registry for domestic partners; offering limited, marriage-like rights that would including hospital visitation and the ability to make health care decisions.
Rand Hoch, president of the Palm Beach County Human Rights Council, a leading proponent of the bill who addressed lawmakers, said the bill has a "broad appeal" for helping Floridians take care of each other. He acknowledged, however, activists still had plenty of work ahead of them to educate legislators of its importance.Broward and West Palm Beach Counties and the cities of Miami and Tallahassee are among the handful of municipalities in the state that offer their own benefits.
"I don’t think many legislators have been dealing with the issue of domestic partners on their way up, so it’s still an educational process," Hoch admitted. "But this gets the discussion going. It’s really hard to tell how the legislature will react."
The domestic partnership bill died last year before it was able to go to the Senate floor after it faced strong opposition from Republicans and socially conservative organizations. According to a Florida Family Association newsletter, lawmakers received more than 10,000 e-mails against the measure
Hoch hopes this year will be different. He noted many senior citizens in West Palm Beach - many of them heterosexual - already take advantage of the county’s registries in making funeral arrangements and important health decisions. Hoch also plans to emphasize the registry has no cost to the state and it would not require employers to offer benefits to domestic partners, an important point for economically-focused lawmakers.
"This bill would not cost the state of Florida or employers a dime, but will make life easier for our families, hospitals and other places that are limited in the information they can provide and who they can recognize as family members," Hoch explained. "Partners have been kept away from their partners, and there have been instances where they could never say goodbye, let alone provide information," Hoch said. "Instead, you have a family member-by-blood making decisions who hasn’t seen this person for years. It’s unfortunate."
Hoch further stressed the importance of supporters of domestic partnerships contacting their legislators as part of a statewide educational process being set into motion.
"We have to educate legislators on how this bill helps gays and lesbians with families and seniors who are not married," he emphasized. "Together, we are a bunch of families that deserve a bit more protection and recognition than we currently have in Florida."
According to Equality Florida, the most recent statewide polling indicates 77 percent of Floridians support extending benefits to unmarried couples.
