Tallahassee adopts domestic partner law

The Tallahassee city commission voted to adopt two key policies that will support same sex-couples.

In a unanimous decision, the commission approved domestic partner benefits for same-sex employees. City employees are now able to add partners as beneficiaries for health, dental, vision and other benefits. The commission also decided to include sexual orientation and gender identity to the city’s human rights ordinance’s discrimination and anti-harassment policies.

In discussing the decisions, Commissioner Andrew Gillum talked about his brother, who is gay, and who had expressed feeling like a second-class citizen. Mayor John Marks stated that the commission should have implemented the policies long ago.