Tag: Same-sex benefits

While U.S. Rep. Jared Polis was less than thrilled with the memorandum President Barack Obama signed Wednesday extending some benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees, the openly gay Boulder Democrat emphatically did not boycott the Oval Office signing ceremony, a Polis spokeswoman tells The Colorado Independent.

U.S. Rep. Jared Polis said he was happy -- but not very happy -- President Barack Obama would be extending certain benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees Wednesday afternoon. The openly gay Boulder Democrat, who a day earlier ripped the Obama administration’s defense of a federal law banning same-sex marriage, told The Colorado Independent the federal benefits extension amounted to "a far cry from the equality we seek."

Without fanfare or even a mention, Gov. Bill Ritter sometime on Monday "quietly" signed into law Senate Bill 88, which extends health insurance benefits...

Gov. Bill Ritter said he will probably sign a bill passed Tuesday that extends health insurance benefits to gay and lesbian domestic partners of state employees. "I expect to sign that but I haven't heard from the opposition on that," Ritter, a Democrat, told The Denver Post's Tim Hoover. "If there's a request to do that, I'll certainly let them do that."

The Colorado House gave final approval Tuesday to a bill that extends health insurance benefits to gay and lesbian domestic partners of state employees. The bill has already passed the state Senate and heads to Gov. Bill Ritter for his signature.

Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter on Thursday signed into law House Bill 1260, a measure that allows gay and lesbian couples and other unmarried adults to establish sweeping legal rights for each other — including inheritance, the ability to make medical decisions and hospital visitation rights. Groups representing gays and lesbians, senior citizens and low-income residents cheered the governor's support for the Designated Beneficiary Agreement Act, which goes into effect July 1.

Colorado state Rep. Mark Ferrandino praised the Iowa Supreme Court's ruling Friday that overturned a state law there banning same-sex marriage.

A Colorado House committee voted Tuesday afternoon to approve a bill that would extend health insurance benefits to same-sex domestic partners of state employees. The bill, which has already passed the state Senate, advanced on a party-line vote after testimony from opponents, who said the measure unfairly extends special rights to gay couples and defies the will of state voters, who passed an amendment banning gay marriage in 2006. Supporters called it the right thing to do and said the benefits to the state outweigh anticipated costs.

A spokesman for the Interfaith Alliance of Colorado on Wednesday condemned remarks made Monday by state Sen. Scott Renfroe when he called homosexuality an "abomination" and an "offense to God" in a debate over a bill to extend health benefits to same-sex partners of state employees. "As a Christian, I am profoundly saddened by the hate speech uttered by Sen. Renfroe in the name of God,” the Rev. Richard Craft, interim pastor at Family of Christ Presbyterian Church of Greeley, said in a statement.

Conservative blogger and columnist Ari Armstrong says state Sen. Scott Renfroe should resign and calls on the state GOP to "publicly condemn" the Greeley Republican for his remarks comparing homosexuality to murder during a debate over a bill to extend health benefits to same-sex partners of state employees. "It's the right thing to do," Armstrong writes in his FreeColorado.com blog, "and it's also the prudent political move, if the GOP wishes to be taken seriously as a political force in Colorado."