Orlando City Council is expected to
approve a domestic partner registry for gay and lesbian couples on
Monday.
The proposed legislation won
preliminary approval at a December 5 meeting.
The registry would give couples limited
rights such as visiting a partner in a hospital, making health care
decisions for an incapacitated partner and making funeral
arrangements for a partner.
Mayor Buddy Dyer and the six-member
City Council unanimously supported the measure during last week's
meeting.
“I'm supportive of this ordinance
because it is simply … the right thing to do, and it's the right
time to do it,” Dyer said during the meeting.
However, several people spoke out
against the proposed ordinance, the Orlando
Sentinel reported.
“Same sex couples … are committing
crimes against the natural order,” Charles Norris said. “Those
who rule better rule wisely, lest God's anger will come and destroy
them.”
Orlando is following in the footsteps
of several Florida municipalities in enacting the registry, including
the cities of Miami and Gainesville and the counties of Broward,
Miami-Dade and Palm Beach.
In 2008, Florida voters approved a
constitutional amendment that bans gay marriage in the state.
A domestic partner registry is also
under consideration in Orange County.