A proposal for Dallas Area Rapid Transit to offer domestic partner benefits was tabled today and will be discussed in December instead.
DART’s administrative committee was slated to hear the plan Tuesday, but time ran out before members could be briefed.
DART board member Claude Williams, the committee’s vice chair who requested a presentation on DP benefits in October, said he’ll make sure it’s a priority to hear the plan when the committee meets again on Dec. 11.
DART currently allows only spouses recognized by Texas law to be covered under employees’ health insurance. The proposal would broaden the scope of eligibility to not limit it to just spouses.
Based on the prepared presentation for Tuesday’s meeting, DART’s potential plan would follow the plans of other agencies in Texas that offer DP benefits by mandating a shared household for a minimum time period, as well as requiring domestic partners to be at least 18.
The expected cost is listed as ranging from $105,000 to $210,000 annually.
Last week, Dallas County voted to offer insurance vouchers to the domestic partners of employees. Then, on Friday, state Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, requested an opinion from the Texas attorney general’s office about whether domestic partner benefits are legal under Texas’ constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.
Read the proposal for DART to offer DP benefits below.
Domestic Partner Benefits_Administrative