State Laws: Domestic Partnerships

By Jade Yeban, J.D. | Legally reviewed by Bridget Molitor, J.D. | Last reviewed October 05, 2023

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Every state establishes its own laws, including those that govern domestic partnerships.  Domestic partnership laws gives certain legal rights to couples who do not want to get married.  In the aftermath of the legalization of same-sex marriage, domestic partnerships are not offered in every state.

Registered domestic partners may receive some legal rights like those of married couples. These rights typically include healthcare, health insurance, and visitation rights.

Both same-sex couples and opposite-sex couples can enjoy domestic partnership law. However, domestic partnership laws have changed in light of landmark Supreme Court decisions.

This article provides a brief overview of domestic partnerships in America today. It also provides a list of municipalities that extend protections to domestic partners across the nation.

Domestic Partnerships: A Brief History

Before the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) decision, which states that same-sex marriage bans are unconstitutional, not all states allowed same-sex couples to marry. Many places created domestic partnership registration to give some protections to these couples. Registered domestic partnership status gave couples rights such as healthcare and visitation.

Yet, marriage offered more. For example, common law and community property rules often did not apply. Later, as marriage rights expanded, the need for domestic partnerships decreased.

Marriage equality is now federal law. After the Obergefell decision, the status of domestic partner benefits was unclear among states. It was also unclear in different cities and counties within states. As a result, domestic partnerships and civil unions are much less popular. What's more, many employers are no longer extending benefits to domestic partners.

Yet, there are instances where unmarried couples may choose to forego marriage. Unmarried cohabitants should check with the state and local laws in their jurisdictions. This can help determine what rights may be available to them. 

Domestic Partnership Laws Today

Today, domestic partnership law varies across states. Some places still offer protections to registered domestic partners. This is true even though same-sex marriage is legal. Domestic partnerships can give benefits like health insurance and social security. Others might enjoy income tax advantages.

To start a domestic partnership, a couple might file a declaration of domestic partnership. This is usually filed with the city clerk or secretary of state. They often need to pay a filing fee. There are also other requirements like age. Sometimes, they may need a notary or to apply in person.

Domestic Partnership Laws By State

Alabama Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
Alaska In this state, the City and Borough of Juneau extend protections to domestic partners.
Arizona This state allows domestic partnerships (name changed to “Civil Union Registry") for limited reasons. The cities of Phoenix, Tempe, Scottsdale, and Tucson extend benefits to domestic partners. Additional cities include Bisbee, Cottonwood, Flagstaff, and Sedona. The towns of Jerome and Clarkdale also recognize domestic partnerships. Pima County is the only county within the state to do so. These benefits include the right to visitation with a domestic partner in any healthcare facility within the city.
Arkansas The City of Eureka Springs does certify domestic partnership registrations. This was the first and only city in the state to extend health insurance coverage for domestic partners of city employees.
California In California, the following cities extend protections to domestic partners within the state: Berkeley, Beverly Hills, Cathedral City, Davis, Healdsburg, Laguna Beach, Long Beach, Modesto, Oakland, Palm Springs, Palo Alto, Petaluma, Sacramento, San Bruno, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barabara, San Luis Obispo, Santa Monica, Santa Rosa, and West Hollywood. The following counties extend similar protections: Alameda, Marin, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, and Ventura.
Colorado This state recognizes civil unions instead of domestic partnerships. The specific cities of Aspen, Boulder, and Denver extend benefits to civil union members. Eagle County is the only county within the state to extend benefits to domestic partners.
Connecticut The state extends benefits to domestic partners. The city of Hartford extends benefits to domestic partners and provides a domestic partner registry.
Delaware Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners. All previous civil unions were automatically converted into civil marriages when same-sex marriages were legalized.
Florida The following cities in the state of Florida offer domestic partnership registrations and protections to domestic partners: Bay Habor Islands, Cape Coral, Clearwater, Gainesville, Hialeah, Key West, Kissimmee, Lake Worth, Miami, Miramar, North Miami, Pembroke Pines, Punta Gorda, Sarasota, South Miami, St. Petersburg, Tavares, West Palm Beach, and Wilton Manors. The following counties offer similar benefits: Broward, Hillsborough, Leon, Miami-Dade, Orange, Palm Beach, Pinellas, and Sarasota.
Georgia In Georgia, the following cities have domestic partnership registries and offer protections to domestic partners: Atlanta, Clarkston, Decatur, Doraville, East Point, and Savannah. The following counties offer similar protections: Athens-Clarke, DeKalb, and Fulton.
Hawaii In this state, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. However, the state also offers same-sex marriages (like all other states), civil unions, and reciprocal beneficiary relationships.
Idaho Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
Illinois In this state, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. However, the state also allows civil unions and same-sex marriages (like all other states). The following cities extend protection to domestic partners: Champaign, Chicago, Urbana, and the village of Oak Park. The following counties extend similar benefits: Champaign and Cook.
Indiana In this state, the cities of Bloomington and Indianapolis offer protection to domestic partners.
Iowa In Iowa, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. Iowa City extends benefits to residents.
Kansas In this state, residents of the cities of Lawrence or Topeka can register as domestic partners.
Kentucky In Kentucky, the following cities extend domestic partnership benefits to their residents: Berea, Covington, and Louisville.
Louisiana In Louisiana, the city and parish of New Orleans offer domestic partnerships if the city employs at least one partner.
Maine In this state, the city of Portland extends domestic partnership benefits to residents.
Maryland In Maryland, the following cities offer protection to domestic partnerships: College Park, Hyattsville, Mount Rainier, and Takoma Park. The following counties extend similar protections: Howard and Montgomery.
Massachusetts In this state, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. In Massachusetts, the following cities offer domestic partnerships: Boston and Cambridge. The towns of Brewster, Brookline, Nantucket, and Provincetown also offer similar protections.
Michigan The following cities extend protections to domestic partners: Ann Arbor, Detroit, East Lansing, and Kalamazoo. Wayne County also offers similar protections.
Minnesota The following cities offer protections to domestic partnerships: Crystal, Duluth, Eagan, Eden Prairie, Edina, Golden Valley, Maplewood, and Minneapolis. Also included are the cities: Northfield, Richfield, Robbinsdale, Rochester, Saint Paul, Shorewood, and St. Louis Park.
Mississippi Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
Missouri In the state of Missouri, the cities of Clayton, Columbia, Kansas City, Olivette, St. Louis, and University City all offer protections to domestic partnerships. Jackson County also offers residents of Missouri extended protections as domestic partners.
Montana In this state, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. The city of Missoula and Missoula County both extend protections of domestic partners to residents.
Nebraska Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
Nevada Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
New Hampshire All previous civil unions in the state were converted to marriages when same-sex marriages were legalized nationwide.
New Jersey In this state, the Domestic Partnership Act was signed into law in 2004. This Act established domestic partnerships statewide. Under this Act, domestic partners were offered similar protections of marriage.
New Mexico In New Mexico, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. The cities of Albuquerque and Santa Fe both extend protections to domestic partners.
New York In New York, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. The following towns, villages, and cities extend protections to domestic partners: Albany, Babylon, East Hampton, Great Neck, Great Neck Plaza, Greenburgh, Huntington, Ithaca, New York, North Hempstead, North Hills, Rochester, Southampton, and Southold. The following counties also extend similar protections: Albany, Rockland, Suffolk, and Westchester.
North Carolina Chapel Hill extends protections to domestic partners. The following counties also offered similar protections: Buncombe, Mecklenburg, and Orange.
North Dakota Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
Ohio

The following cities and villages extend protections to domestic partners: Athens, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Columbus, Dayton, Oberlin, Toledo, and Yellow Springs. The following counties offer similar protections: Cuyahoga and Franklin.
Oklahoma Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
Oregon In Oregon, the following cities extend protections to domestic partners: Ashland, Eugene, Gresham, and Portland. Multnomah County and Benton County also offer similar protections.
Pennsylvania In the state of Pennsylvania, protections are extended to domestic partners in the cities of Allentown, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and the borough of State College.
Rhode Island In the state of Rhode Island, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. Burlington City extends protections to domestic protections.
South Carolina Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
Tennessee In the state of Tennessee, the cities of Chattanooga, Knoxville and the city-county government of Nashville-Davidson County extend protections to domestic partners who are employees of the city.
Texas In this state, the following cities extend protections to domestic partners who are employees of the city: Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio. Travis County also extends benefits to domestic partners.
Utah In Utah, the city of Salt Lake offers Mutual Commitment Registries to city residents.
Vermont In this state, domestic partnerships are limited to state employees only. The city of Burlington and the town of Middlebury extend protections to domestic partners within the state.
Virginia Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners. The city of Alexandria extends benefits to domestic partners.
Washington All domestic partnerships have been automatically converted into civil marriages within the state. However, there is one exception if the couple has at least one member aged 62 or older. The following cities extend benefits to domestic partners: Anacortes, Bellevue, Burien, Des Moines, Edmonds, Lacey, Newcastle, Olympia, Seattle, Spokane, and Tacoma. The following counties extend similar protections: Pierce, Snohomish, and Whatcom.
West Virginia Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.
Wisconsin In Wisconsin, the following cities extend protections to domestic partners: Eau Claire and Milwaukee. The following counties extend similar protections: Dane, Kenosha, Milwaukee, and Rock.
Wyoming Neither the state nor any municipality in the state provides specific rights to domestic partners.

Each city and county can make its own rules on domestic partnerships. Consult with your city or county clerk's office or a local family law attorney to learn more about domestic partner benefits where you live.

Get Legal Help with Your Domestic Partnership or Marriage

Domestic partnerships are less common today due to the legalization of same-sex marriage. However, many states still recognize these legal relationships and the benefits associated with them. State laws on domestic partnership differ by state. But there are some reasons why you might want a domestic partnership instead of a marriage license.

A lawyer can help you make this decision. They can provide you with valuable legal advice to obtain your registered domestic partnership. They can also help in the event of the termination of domestic partnership.

You can find out more by speaking with a qualified family law attorney in your state.

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Can I Solve This on My Own or Do I Need an Attorney?

  • Property and financial issues in domestic partnerships can be challenging
  • Attorneys can draft a cohabitation agreement to solve any concerns
  • You may need legal help with property division and child custody

Get tailored advice about the domestic partnership laws in your state. Many attorneys offer free consultations.

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Don't Forget About Estate Planning

People in a domestic partnership should create or change their estate planning forms. Take the time to add new beneficiaries (including your partner!) to your will. Consider creating a power of attorney to ensure your partner can access your financial accounts. Also, a health care directive lets your partner make your medical decisions if you ever become incapacitated.

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