Incline Village, Nevada, found itself in the middle of a change. A change that was tangled in a decision over whether or not domestic partners or same-sex marriages should receive equal health benefits as those in opposite-sex marriages. In a 4 to 1 vote, the Incline Village General Improvement District (IVGID) Trustees voted to reinstate health benefits for domestic partners on Wednesday, March 11.
The board had revoked the benefits in a 3-2 vote February 25.
IVGID Administrative Offices and IVGID Trustees met a packed house of about 60 concerned residents with hopes of reversing the prior decision to deny domestic partners health benefits.
Five employees were eligible for domestic partner benefits and three employees elected to take advantage of the benefits.
Board member Bea Epstein, was one of the Trustees who was against taking away health benefits from the beginning and requested the issue be brought to a public forum so the community could weigh in on it.
‘We owe the reversal of this error to Trustee Bea Epstein,’ says Incline local Susan Coyote.
Just a week after the California Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the controversial Proposition 8 legal challenge that eliminated same-sex couples right to marry, it became apparent that Incline Village community members were not going to let the resolution rest.
The board’s Feb. 25 decision drew national media attention.
‘The emails, letters and unsettled voices started pouring into the IVGID office and it was decided the resolution deserved another look,’ said IVGID General Manager Bill Horn.
Locally, the decision generated strong criticism. At the March 11 meeting, one person came forward in favor of the board’s original decision to eliminate health benefits for domestic partners. The rest of the nearly 20 speakers expressed opposition.
The night invited a spirited debate between the Trustees and dozens of community members who spoke in favor of reversing the earlier decision. The support for the reversal was overwhelming.
‘One mom got up and was in tears because she was worried she was raising her son in a town where fairness and equality wasn’t present,’ Horn said. ‘She was embarrassed by her community.’
The entire night words of equality, fairness, and diversity resonated throughout the room said Horn and at the conclusion of the meeting Trustees voted to overturn the prior decision.
‘It was a very spirited and friendly atmosphere laced with high emotions from a cross section of the community,’ said Horn who also adds the outpour and support encouraged a new level of equality.
IVGID is a quasi-public agency established under Nevada Revised Statute, Chapter 318 and chartered to provide water, sewer, trash and recreation services for the communities of Incline Village and Crystal Bay, Nevada. It is governed by an elected Board of Trustees which, acting on behalf of the electorate, sets policy and determines strategies for the accomplishment of its charter.
‘We are a Government Agency looked at as a primary Government bond,’ adds Horn ‘…and the issue circled around the fact that IVGID, an employer, was making the decisions regarding the health benefits and IVGID employees came to say that it was not right.’
While there are still a lot of questions in how to create a level playing field for both same-sex and opposite-sex marriages it is clear that IVGID employees are no longer threatened by the decision.
In addition to its 4-1 vote to reinstate benefits, the board also unanimously directed staff to draft a revised policy that requires an affidavit confirming domestic partnerships.
Audience and board members expressed that the new policy should not set different standards for married couples and domestic partners. The new policy is expected to be drafted and presented to the public for consideration on April 12.
For more information, contact Bill Horn at Bill_horn@ivgid.org.
