Though city employees in domestic partnerships were supposed to be offered medical benefits earlier this year, Athens City Council has yet to offer the benefits, citing budget reductions.
For the past year, Council has been drafting an ordinance to allow city employees in domestic partnerships to receive the same insurance benefits as married employees, Council President Jim Sands said.
With support from the majority of the city’s departments, including Mayor Paul Wiehl, Sands said Council was ready to have sign off on the benefits as early as the beginning of the year.
However, state cuts to the city’s budget halted the ordinance’s progress and left Council cautious in approving the benefits.
“We all want this,” Sands said. “All of the city’s employees deserve to have these benefits, but with these cuts, we need to make sure it will be cost-effective to make this happen now.”
The ordinance will recognize domestic partnerships between both homosexual and heterosexual couples, offering medical, prescription and life-insurance benefits, said Claudia Reagan, Athens personnel director.
City employees are required to use the Athens’ insurance plan if they are not already on their significant other’s plan, Reagan added.
Though the ordinance has been put on hold for financial reasons, Reagan said she has only just begun research on how costly the additional benefits could be for the city.
Reagan said she is hoping to look at Ohio University’s domestic-partnership benefits program and see how those costs affect the university’s budget.
“The city is very proactive about domestic-partnership benefits, and we need to do the appropriate research to make sure the costs are not too high for the city, no matter how much we want them,” she said.
Reagan added that providing additional benefits could increase expenses for the city because the city is not affiliated with an insurance company.
Despite potential cost increases, Councilwoman Chris Knisely, D-at large, said she hopes city benefits will be given to these employees within the year.
“We need to make an informed decision on this, but this should be offered anyway.” Knisely said.
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