Lawyers Manual - Unified Court System

414 Sharon Stapel
17. See, e.g., New York City (NYC Admin. Code § 3-241 (2000)), Buffalo,
Westchester County (Westchester County Domestic Partnership Registry),
City of Rochester (Roch. Charter & Code v.9 (N.Y.) § 47B), City of Ithaca
(1990), and Albany (1996).
18. When recognized, domestic partnerships do confer privileges and a legal
status to same-sex couples who are so partnered. See
http://nycmarriagebureau.com/about/domesticpartnership.html (last visited
May 2, 2006). In New York City, the rights conferred by a New York City
domestic partnership include: bereavement leave and childcare for NYC
employees; visitation in correctional and/or juvenile detention centers;
visitation in facilities operated by the NYC Health and Hospitals
Corporation; eligibility to qualify as family member to be added by New
York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) to an existing tenancy as a
permanent resident; eligibility to qualify as family member entitled to
succeed to the tenancy or occupancy of a tenant or cooperator in buildings
supervised by or under the jurisdiction of the Department of Housing
Preservation and Development; health benefits provided by NYC to its
employees and retirees and eligible members of their family pursuant to
stipulation or collective bargaining. However, a domestic partner does not
qualify as a “family or household member” under the Family Court Act.
19. In 2001-2002, the Governor and the State Legislature also recognized
same-sex surviving partners of gay victims of the September 11, 2001,
World Trade Center attacks as “surviving spouses” for the purposes of
receiving benefits from the Crime Victims Board (Executive Order No.
113.30, 9 NYCRR 5.113.30 (Oct. 10, 2001)), for the September 11 Federal
Fund awards (see also, September 11th Victims and Families Relief Act,
2002 Session Law News of NY, ch 73), workers compensation death
benefits (2002 Session Law News of NY, ch 467, S7685), and the State’s
World Trade Center Memorial Scholarship Program (2002 Session Law
News of NY, ch 176, S7792). This law includes same-sex surviving
partners and their children. In 2004, the Governor and the State Legislature
passed a bill allowing domestic partners the right of visitation accorded to
spouses and next-of-kin at any hospital, nursing home or health care
facility. NY Pub Health § 2805-q (2004). The State has extended the right
to same-sex partners of credit union members to become members and
have full access to banking services (2003 Session Law News of NY, ch
679, S5590). In February 2006, the Governor signed the Control of
Remains Bill that extends control of a partner’s corpse to include domestic
partners, both same-sex and opposite-sex. The bill gives equal standing to
spouses and domestic partners above blood relationships like adult