Gainesville extended the rights of registered domestic partners by passing a city law giving partners more benefits at a meeting Thursday.
The law will extend pension and other benefits to people in domestic partnerships as well as spouses.
In the evening session of its meeting, the Gainesville City Commission, led by Mayor pro-tempore Jack Donovan, passed the ordinance in a unanimous 5-0 vote with Mayor Pegeen Hanrahan and Commissioner Thomas Hawkins Jr. absent.
The law will make domestic partners eligible for pension benefits.
Other benefits include allowing multiple family names on cemetery memorials and mausoleums, which was previously prohibited by a city ordinance.
The law would also give domestic partners more rights under the city's building codes.
When three or more people live together, and they aren't related or married, the building is not considered a residential home. Now, domestic partners are counted as equal to spouses.
The law was passed immediately with no discussion among the commissioners or citizens.
In its first reading on Nov. 6, the proposed law was also passed unanimously without discussion.
The law was first proposed in May by the Equal Opportunity Committee, which recommended recognizing and providing more benefits to domestic partners.
