LGBTs and allies plan to pack Pinellas County Commission chambers on Jan. 15 as the new commission begins official discussions of a countywide domestic partnership registry. But if comments from commissioners in December are any indication, the deal is all but done.
Newly elected board members Charlie Justice and Janet Long replaced right-leaning commissioners on Nov. 6, and both support the registry. Even Norm Roche, who is seen as the most conservative commissioner remaining on the board, seems to support the registry. He even wants to make sure that couples who have registered in one of the cities within the county already offering the protections are grandfathered into a county-wide version.
“I don’t want to see folks who have paid $25 to register with the city pay another $50 to register with the county,” he told the board during its Dec. 6 meeting.
There has long been talk of a registry for the county in workshops throughout 2012, but this is the first substantial move toward an ordinance that would let unmarried couples in the county – gay or straight – register for a handful of certain rights that are typically reserved for married couples. If the registry is approved, which is expected, unmarried couples could visit each other in emergency rooms and make healthcare decisions for each other.
While already-registered couples may not have to pay another fee, there is a chance they would need to re-register with the county in order to have the relationship recognized on a countywide level.
While the registry itself isn’t expected to face much official opposition, the way in which it is handled could create a heated discussion among board members. Since the registry itself is expected to be a public list of online names and addresses, some commissioners are concerned about privacy issues.
“How do we protect someone’s privacy if we don’t want someone looking into their personal information,” Commissioner Karen Seel asked at the December meeting. “What I’m concerned about is if somebody decides they want to target someone.”
Several precautions could be put into place to protect privacy, according to Jim Bennett, County attorney. He said access codes and passwords could be incorporated, but expressed concern that those steps could make it difficult for school and health officials to verify that couples are registered as domestic partners.
The board will meet at 9 a.m. Jan. 15 and the registry will be on the agenda.
