Early this morning, the State Assembly passed the biennial state budget, which includes important and limited domestic partnership protections for the state’s same-sex couples. The proposed domestic partnerships will grant basic protections to same-sex couples in caring, committed relationships, including hospital visitation and the ability to take Family Medical Leave to care for a sick or injured partner.

The domestic partnership protections survived an attempt to remove them from the state budget by a vote of 50-48, and the budget went on to be passed by a 50-48 margin.

“This is an important step toward ensuring that someone in a committed relationship is able to care for his or her partner,” said Glenn Carlson, Executive Director of Fair Wisconsin. “Fair Wisconsin applauds our state representatives who realize that no one should ever have to worry about being blocked at their partner’s hospital room door, or have to make the heartbreaking decision to quit their job in order to care for a seriously ill partner. This isn’t about being gay or straight—it’s about being decent.”

“People in Wisconsin are ready to provide these crucial protections to committed couples,” says Fair Wisconsin Legislative Director Katie Belanger. “We are grateful for the exceptional leadership of many State Representatives who recognize and value our state’s same sex couples. They know that the government shouldn’t stand in the way of someone being able to care for their long-term partner. We now look forward to working with the State Senate to ensure that these critical protections remain in the state budget.”

The State Senate is scheduled to vote on the biennial budget next week, and Governor Doyle expects to sign the legislation into law by the end of June.

If domestic partnerships become law, Wisconsin would be the first state with an existing constitutional amendment banning marriage equality and civil unions to provide domestic partnership protections for same-sex couples.

The Wisconsin Legislative Council issued an opinion on May 6th, 2009, supporting the legality of domestic partnerships under the constitutional amendment, stating “it is reasonable to conclude that the domestic partnerships proposed…do not confer a legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals in violation of art. XIII, s.13.”

To be eligible for a domestic partnership, two individuals must be of the same sex, both be at least 18 years old, share a common residence, not be nearer of kin than second cousins, and neither party can be married or in another domestic partnership with anyone else. Domestic partnerships will be administered at the county level, and couples must sign a legal declaration of their commitment.