Registry might see changes - South Sound - The Olympian - Olympia, Washington

Registry might see changes - South Sound - The Olympian - Olympia, Washington

Brad Shannon
If 2007 was a good year for the legal rights of same-sex couples in Washington state, advocates say they want the next year to bring even more rights — and some responsibilities — to the state's domestic partnership registry.
The registry has drawn 3,161 same-sex couples and unmarried heterosexual couples to sign up since it went into effect July 22.
Considered the first step toward legal same-sex marriage, it provides about 10 legal rights enjoyed by married couples, including rights of visitation in hospitals and certain rights to participate in end-of-life decisions.
"We are planning to continue the incremental strategy we set out on last year. We are working right now on the details of what will be included. But we are proposing a package that would expand the rights," Rep. Jamie Pedersen, a Seattle Democrat and lawyer, said recently.
Pedersen said bill sponsors are debating whether to clarify community property statutes that already can extend to same-sex couples or whether to address nursing home issues, including privacy concerns.
Another is the way a same-sex couple's joint ownership of a home can lead to a denial of coverage under Medicaid but not for a similarly situated married couple.
But he said the bills could include "a substantial chunk of the 400 rights that same-sex couples and partners over 62 don't have access to without marriage."
Opposition is expected no matter what rights are proposed.
"Obviously there are going to be bills sponsored by Democratic legislators," Republican Sen. Dan Swecker of Rochester said recently. "I'm here and ready to oppose them, but I don't have a clue on what they are proposing.''
Swecker has taken a lead in opposing gay-rights legislation in recent years. "I'll probably be a voice in the wilderness. The Republicans are in such a minority,'' Swecker added.
Swecker predicted that whatever moves in the Legislature "will depend on the Democratic leaders and how much tolerance for risk they have in the next election."
Pedersen is one of several openly gay lawmakers along with Sen. Ed Murray, D-Seattle, who championed the state's groundbreaking domestic partnership registry that won passage in 2007.
Murray has said it is all about marriage equality and that it might take three to 10 years to achieve full equality.
Pedersen said he doesn't just want rights for registered domestic partners; he also wants to include responsibilities — such a requiring registered partners of elected and appointed political figures to report gifts, sources of income and contracts on forms filed with the Public Disclosure Commission.
"I think the point is this is not a lark. This is a serious legal obligation … People need to understand that when they go into it,'' Pedersen said of domestic partnerships.
Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, D-Spokane, said she anticipates at least one bill expanding rights.
She suggested the chamber's reasoning to follow a process they've seen before, laying out the rights and responsibilities associated with marriage and asking if there is there a reason not to extend the rights to same-sex couples.
House Speaker Frank Chopp said recently he expects Pedersen, Murray and others to propose an expansion of the list of rights available to same-sex couples through the registry. And, he said, he supports that effort.
Olympia City Councilman Jeff Kingsbury, who sued unsuccessfully with other same-sex couples to overturn Washington's one-man, one-woman definition of marriage, said he is pleasantly surprised to see lawmakers are continuing to push for more rights on the registry, believing the short session would be more focused on making budget adjustments and few policy changes.
But he said he is disappointed to again see an incremental approach rather than an all-out push to legalize same-sex marriage. And he questioned the idea of requiring disclosure of a partner's assets under state law, saying: "I don't know why couples that are exempt from all the privileges of marriages federally should be required to report their partners' assets.''
The legislative session starts Jan. 14 and runs 60 days.
Brad Shannon is political editor for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-753-1688 or bshannon@theolympian.com.