Hillsborough commission blocks study of domestic partner benefits

TAMPA — Hillsborough County will not be extending health benefits to unmarried partners of its employees anytime soon, if ever.

A 5-2 majority of commissioners blocked newcomer Kevin Beckner, who is openly gay, from asking the county staff to study the idea Thursday.

While domestic partner benefits are a top priority of gay rights advocates, commissioners mostly framed their opposition in financial terms. They said they could not justify expanding benefits for county employees when they are cutting programs elsewhere and taxpayers are struggling.

"We've got to make a very loud statement to the community that we get it," said Commissioner Mark Sharpe. "We'll be labeled backward and antiprogressive. That's not the case. The message is being fiscally sound."

Only Commissioner Jim Norman acknowledged the social component of the proposal. He said he believes marriage is between a man and woman, and that benefits for county employees should extend only to married couples.

"I'm a conservative, and I'm not ashamed of being a conservative," he said.

Commissioner Rose Ferlita offered Beckner the lone vote of support. She said that while she opposes expanding benefits at this time due to the down economy, she supports letting another commissioner gather information with the help of the county staff.

Beckner became the first openly gay candidate to win a County Commission seat in November. A financial planner, he said during the campaign that he was not running to promote a gay agenda.

Critics immediately seized on that assertion last week when Beckner floated the topic of domestic partner benefits. Some of those critics reiterated that line of attack during the public comment period of Thursday's meeting.

"I hope this is a one-time incident and not an indication that we're looking forward to four years of battling a radical liberal agenda," said Terry Kemple, president of the group Community Issues Council, which fights for restrictions on public nudity and other socially conservative causes.

Beckner framed the issue as one of equal rights rather than gay rights, and said he was broaching the topic Thursday only because the county is preparing to seek bids for a new county health insurance provider.

Before any of that could be debated, though, he had to overturn a policy adopted in 2004 at the urging of then-Commissioner Ronda Storms, barring all consideration of such benefits. It forbids county employees from spending time and money looking into extending domestic partner benefits, and was adopted after Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio offered them to city employees.

Beckner had hoped Thursday to be able to ask County Administrator Pat Bean's staff to come back with costs estimates.

But when it was clear there was no support, he scaled down his request, trying merely to rescind the 2004 policy so that the issue could be studied when the economy improves. And that was the question they rejected 5-2.

He said he could not understand how commissioners would oppose getting more information on any topic.

"It's about being able to have a thoughtful discussion," he said.

Indeed, commissioners have historically allowed individual board members to seek information from the staff even if they oppose the ultimate goal. Not Thursday, though, a point that upset the Rev. Phyllis Hunt of the Metropolitan Community Church of Tampa.

Hunt gave the invocation at the start of the Tampa City Council meeting Thursday, and at one point prayed that the County Commission would make the right decision on Beckner's proposal. Beckner is a member of the gay-friendly church.

"This was about doing due diligence on behalf of the citizens of our county," Hunt said. "They stood by their bigotry and prejudice."

Bill Varian can be reached at varian@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3387.