University Senate leaders urge KU to offer domestic partner benefits

University Senate members are urging the Kansas University administration to grant benefits to employees’ domestic partners.

The University Senate Executive Committee on Tuesday approved a resolution supporting such benefits. The full University Senate is scheduled to vote on the resolution Thursday and will likely approve it as well, Senate President Jonathan Mayhew said.

“The Senate believes that the addition of these benefits would not only be a fitting recognition and appreciation of domestic partners, but would also be a welcome addition to the package of benefits we now offer prospective employees,” a draft of the resolution reads.

The resolution echoes a recent report from the University Senate’s Domestic Partner Benefits Committee, which concluded that KU’s lack of medical insurance and other significant benefits for domestic partners — same or opposite sex — violates the university’s own anti-discrimination policy.

Current state and federal laws restrict KU from offering such benefits, Rachel Rolf, an attorney for KU, said in the report. She also said they could create tax and regulatory challenges for the university.

KU does offer a few benefits to domestic partners — including gym access and bereavement leave for various definitions of partners — but not the most valuable benefits, which are medical and dental insurance, according to the report.

The University Senate’s resolution is not binding. It would be up to KU administration to make any policy changes.

Still, said Mayhew, who is a professor in the department of Spanish and Portuguese, University Senate members think the issue is worth addressing.

“It’s important for the University of Kansas to reaffirm its commitment to non-discrimination in light of the political climate in Kansas,” he said.