GayPolitics reported last week, via Pam’s House Blend, that the University of Alabama-Birmingham has elected to extend benefits to same-sex partners in an effort to attract and maintain the best staff, thus becoming the first of the three major universities in Alabama to adopt this practice.  Now, an Alabama state legislator is fighting tooth and nail with UAB to knock that same-sex benefits statute off the books, according to the Opelika-Auburn News:

State Rep. DuWayne Bridges, R-Valley, called for UAB to rescind the policy change, adding he was researching ways to stop the policy if it is not voluntarily reversed.

“I intend to utilize every means available,” Bridges said on Wednesday.

…

“I think the people of Alabama have spoken clear and loud, they don’t want state money used like that,” Bridges said, citing the Alabama Sanctity of Marriage Amendment, defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

Bridges cast the issue as moral and financial, saying the change is contrary to the wishes of Alabama voters and the Legislature’s intent for taxpayer’s money.

Rep. Bridges contended that the measure to extend benefits to same-sex partners was “a waste of money.”

A bill that would give the domestic partners of federal employees the same benefits as the spouses of federal employees has been passed in a key House sub-committee.

The Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act, introduced by Reps. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), mandates that same-sex partners of federal employees would be eligible for health benefits, long-term care, family and medical leave, and federal retirement benefits, among others.  The bill also stipulates that partners of federal employees would be subject to the same responsibilites that apply to the spouses of federal employees, such as anti-nepotism rules and financial disclosure requirements.

Baldwin released a statement shortly after the 5-3 vote passage of the bill announcing she was “delighted” by the subcommittee’s action and for Chairman Lynch’s support of the issue.

“Extending benefits to the domestic partners of federal employees is more than a matter of fairness,” said Baldwin.  “As a majority of Fortune 500 companies have already demonstrated, equality and diversity in the workplace boost productivity and help attract and keep the most qualified employees,” Baldwin said.

The bill, if passed by Congress, would also formalize President Obama’s memorandum calling for federal agencies to extend certain benefits to same-sex couples.  At a White House ceremony in June, the President announced his support of the measure.

Learn more about the Domestic Partners Benefits and Obligations Act and other pending LGBT-related federal legislation at the Web site of the Human Rights Campaign.