Last June, CMU announced their plan for providing benefits to domestic
partners. 

CMU gives a university ID card to an employee's domestic partner.
This card entitles the person to all discounts at univerisity
stores/box offices and access to all university events and facilities.
The university also provides berevement leave upon the death of a
domestic partner.

CMU is also exploring with their medical insurance carriers the
possiblity of granting medical benefits to domestic partners.  They
began this process in late July after our committee continued to push
for this benefit.

CMU's definition of domestic partners is:
1. Both parties are over age 18
2. neither is legally married to a third party
3. the parties share the same regular and permanent residence and intend
   to do so for an indefinite future
4. the parties are not related by blood closer than would bar marriage
5. the parties are each other's sole domestic partner and are in a
   relationship of mutual support, caring, commitment and are responsible
   for each other's welfare
6. both parties are mentally competent at the time of registration
7. it the status of either party changes in respect to the above
   criteria, the employee agrees to notify the employer.

Some members of our ad hoc committee have a problem with #3 in this
definition.  Their issue is that married partners do not need to live
together to get benefits.  At a meeting with University officials, we
raised this concern, and they requested that we rewrite the
requirement.  We haven't done this yet, but it is likely that the new
requirment will have "live together or financial incumberance (joint
checking account, morgage, etc)".

For those people interested in our tactics for getting these benefits,
here is a brief history.  The university was considering changing its
benefits policy.  Individuals went to the discussion groups sponsored
by the univesity, and began questioning benefits for unmarried
domestic partners.  One person organized a working group of people
interested in this issue.  This working group decided to collect
signatures on a petition from members of the campus community and
alumni that supported the notion that the university should extend
benefits to domestic partners.

The university caught wind of our activities, and took the initiative
to create a definition and grant a university ID card to domestic
partners (but no medical benefits).  After we collected about 600
signatures in support of our position, we set up a meeting with the
director of benefits.  We presented copies of our petition and raised
the issue of medical benefits and problems with the definition.  The
university was receptive to these issues, and our dialogue with them
is continuing.

________  __
\      / /  \
 \pink/  \__          -+--+-               Scott Safier    (scotts@ri.cmu.edu)
  \  /      \  _  __   |  |                Center for Integrated Manufacturing
   \/    \__/ (__/\_)_/|_/|_/                                 Decision Systems
                                           Carnegie Mellon