March 18, 1998

Richard M. Johnson
Chair, University Senates Conference
136 BSB (M/C 276)

Dear Dick,

On January 28th, you forwarded to me a resolution from the University Senates Conferences on domestic partner benefits.

I brought this issue to the next Policy Council meeting and asked our University Counsel, Thomas Bearrows, for his legal interpretation of the Illinois law in this area.

University Counsel has advised me that it would be contrary to Illinois law for the University to extend health care benefits to domestic partners - whether same-sex or opposite-sex. Group insurance benefits are provided to University employees under the State Employees Group Insurance Act ("SEGIA). SEGIAA provides life and health benefit to state employees and certain of the "dependents", which are defined to include an employee's "spouse". Illinois law interprets the term "spouse" to mean only a partner by legally recognized marriage, not an unmarried partner of the same or opposite sex. Further, Illinois law expressly prohibits same-sex marriages. The University is bound to observe these statues.

This result was confirmed recently by an arbitrator reviewing the denial of insurance benefits to a domestic partner of a UIC faculty member. The arbitrator concluded that the University is bound to comply with the statutes cited above, and, therefore, the failure to provide such benefits did not violate the nondiscrimination provision of the collective bargaining agreement. That provision, like the University's Nondiscrimination Statement, forbade discrimination on the basis of marital status or sexual orientation. As a result, absent action by the Illinois legislature, the University cannot provide group insurance benefits to domestic partners.

I ask that you transmit this information to your campus colleagues.

Sincerely,

James J. Stukel

President

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