| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2010 6:59 pm |
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Editorials 
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Domestic partnerships move steadily forward A year ago, July 23 became a milestone for hundreds of same-sex couples who registered for domestic partnerships. To those who registered on the first day, happy anniversary. Washington is inching -- and sometimes, leaping -- toward equality. We hope the first annual celebrations are merry ones.This first year has been a bureaucratic one. Several city and county governments had registered domestic partners for years, but at the state level, the process can be much more seamless. Those municipalities were ahead of the game; they should continue to be petri dishes for ways that government can acknowledge and administer to the changing American family. In June, the progress was especially ground-breaking. New laws gave domestic partners a whole new range of rights and responsibilities. Domestic partnerships are on track to nearly parallel marriages. Seems only fair. Those in heterosexual marriages gain about 500 rights under Washington law. Before the new laws last month, Washington domestic partners only gained about 22. They now have about 170 and that rift is still changing, thanks to the hard work of activists and lawmakers such as Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., and state Sen. Ed Murray, D-Seattle. D. Ann Peters, domestic partnership supervisor for the Secretary of State, knows there are still gray areas in the process. For example, next of kin needs to be more clearly defined and notarizing the certificates can be complicated. Those discrepancies are up to the legislators. The Secretary of State's office does an excellent job making sure the to-be-partnered aren't scrounging through red tape while filing. Sadly, it may be a long time before it's universal practice. Gender pronouns on government forms are just one worm in the can. The shiny newness of domestic partnerships will also see inevitable terminations. Like their more celebratory counterparts, domestic partnership dissolutions need to become more like divorces. Breakups are ugly enough without all the extra trouble. This anniversary is tremendously exciting for people such as Connie Watts, executive director of Equal Rights Washington. She mentioned how same-sex couples have welcomed creative solutions, even holding notarizing parties. Yet she still sees couples and former couples entangled in legal snafus. The partners denied visas, entrance to emergency rooms and ceded rights when crossing state lines. It's a tough climb, but the progress is palpable. "We see a lot of anniversaries in our future," Watts said. Here's to that. |
- A revolutionary 747
- Fire breaks out at Everett car dealer
- Everett rethinks boutique wineries
- A tidy lawn could be law in Lynnwood
- Snohomish County's bargain housing won't last
- Boeing's 747-8 takes off after weather delay
- Plan for I-5 closures this week
- A new bowling alley for Monroe?
- Lake Stevens man homeless after fire
- I-5 bridge joint may give you a jolt, but it isn't damaged
- Vote on school levies by Tuesday
(11) - A tidy lawn could be law in Lynnwood (10)
- State Senate votes to toss I-960's tax-raising hurdle (6)
- Lynnwood sets height limit on grass: 8 inches (6)
- Everett police officers cleared in 2008 shooting death (5)
- 1949 travel aid shows how few places blacks were welcome in Washington (4)
- I-5 bridge joint may give you a jolt, but it isn't damaged (4)
- Everett rethinks boutique wineries (4)
- County archive software paid for but waiting for set-up (3)
- Three politicians who want Gregoire's job in 2012 (3)
- Edmonds educator, famous announcer dies
- Mill Creek to appeal ruling on annexation
- Through the air, with the greatest of ease
- E-W thriving under new coach
- The path to citizenship
- EUUC puts on ‘Pants & Shoes’
- Wolfpack wins the ‘Battle'
- Lynnwood’s annexation plans OK’d
- Arlington's Cascade Valley Hospital celebrates expansion, national award and 100 years of service
- Business Licences Feb. 2010
- Technology tips for launching your own business
- Business Events Feb. 2010
- Tech Talk: No excuse today for going without a Web site
- State already raising fees and rates that restrict business growth
- Some legislators again targeting people’s initiative petition rights
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