House passes local government benefits bill

The Minnesota House passed a bill Thursday that would allow local municipalities to offer benefits to whoever they decide. A unique set of Minnesota statutes prohibits municipalities such as towns, cities and counties from providing benefits to anyone other than a spouse or dependent child. The bill would expand existing statutes to allow cities to decide how best to offer benefits.

In 1993, the city of Minneapolis began offering domestic partner benefits to it's gay and lesbian employees -- in fact all unmarried but partnered employees. The Minnesota Supreme Court struck down Minneapolis' partner benefits program after Republican activist Jim Lilly sued the city.

“This bill is a common-sense and fair solution to helping provide Minnesota families with the security of health care,” said Monica Meyer, public policy director for OutFront Minnesota. “At the same time, it allows local governments to make the best decisions for their own communities.”

Outfront says that the bill does not force any municipality to change their benefits packages and does not include language pertaining to domestic partners.

A similar bill passed the Senate in April and the bill will be sent to Gov. Tim Pawlenty who has promised to veto the measure under pressure from religious right groups.