Basic Decency in Wisconsin
June 30, 2009
As we've been reporting, the Wisconsin legislature approved a state budget that contained important, though limited, protections for same-sex couples, including hospital visitation and the ability to use Family Medical Leave to care for a partner. Our friends at Fair Wisconsin report that Gov. Jim Doyle, who included these basic protections in the budget he submitted to the legislature, signed the protections into law yesterday morning. Same-sex couples can begin registering as domestic partners in 30 days. Congratulations to Gov. Doyle, the fair-minded legislators who voted for these protections, and Fair Wisconsin. As Fair Wisconsin’s retiring executive director Glenn Carlson put it, providing these basic protections “isn’t about being gay or straight—it’s about being decent.”
