Comments on: Domestic partnership bill filed in Senate https://saintpetersblog.com/domestic-partnership-bill-filed-in-senate/ Life and politics from the Sunshine State's best city Sat, 12 Jan 2013 13:15:19 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 By: Terry Power https://saintpetersblog.com/domestic-partnership-bill-filed-in-senate/#comment-8369 Sat, 12 Jan 2013 13:15:19 +0000 http://spb.wpengine.com/?p=81800#comment-8369 These types of arrangements are already available in Clearwater and some other municipalities. They are extremely useful for heterosexual couples as well in two situations:

1) Older non-married couple who receive social security and keep their finances separate (getting married could cause major tax and benefits issues) but who want their significant other to be able to make medical decisions for them, have access to them when in hospitals, etc.

2) Permanent Alimony Payers who have a partner who is employed or who has a business – our alimony laws would allow an alimony-receiving spouse to go after the new spouse’s income for an “alimony modification”. Not being legally married (but getting all the same benefits via a domestic partnership) takes care of this issue. And “divorce” of a domestic partnership agreement only costs $10. Not the tens or hundreds of thousands in legal fees that our bottom-feeding family law attorneys charge Florida’s families on a daily basis.

Once our Florida Alimony Laws get fixed, marriage will be an option again for alimony payers. Until that time, it’s insane to remarry.

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