Convincing the State Legislature of the University of Wisconsin-Madison's need to provide domestic partner benefits is a campus priority, and one that we have advocated for some time.
Last week, The Daily Cardinal wrongly insinuated that the university is somehow to blame for our inability to provide those benefits. Let me correct the impression left by the editorial.
State statute prohibits us from offering health benefits to the domestic partners of employees. Unless the Legislature changes the statute, our hands are tied.
Four years ago, the Faculty Senate adopted a resolution, approved without a negative vote, calling for health benefits for domestic partners of employees. More recently, UW-Madison has sought alternative means for providing health benefit coverage, but without success. And the university has granted all other benefits to domestic partners that are within our control.
At this point, we are the only Big Ten Conference university that does not afford employees domestic partner health benefits.
Last year, state lawmakers rejected Gov. Jim Doyle's bid to allow us to offer those benefits—which are important in the drive to attract and retain top faculty and staff. We supported the governor's proposal for a number of reasons.
The seen and unseen costs of our inability to provide domestic partner benefits are high. The recent departure of Rob Carpick, a bright young faculty member who is recognized internationally for his work in nanotechnology, is just the latest example. Others have gone before him.
Just as damaging, though, are the unseen costs. What can't be quantified in this debate is the number of talented faculty and staff who pass up a chance to come here because we are unable to offer them the kinds of benefits they can so often find at similar research institutions and, increasingly, in the private sector.
The inability to offer domestic partner benefits puts UW-Madison at a competitive disadvantage in an often unforgiving marketplace.
Economic considerations aside, there is also this: It's unfair to deny those benefits to domestic partners. We're committed to diversity on campus, so it is critical that members of the campus community are afforded equal treatment and access to services.
The university will continue to urge the Legislature to change the law to allow us to compete more robustly in the marketplace and provide the baseline fairness that will keep the UW-Madison a great place to teach, learn and work.
Patrick Farrell
UW-Madison provost
I am saddened by the news of Professor Carpick's departure over lack of health benefits for same-sex partners in the state of Wisconsin. Carpick is a serious, passionate and demanding instructor. Among his many contributions to our classroom were his lectures on an Engineer's moral responsibility bto perform quality work to ensure the safety of the public.
The least I can hope for is that the Republican controlled Wisconsin state Legislature learns from the technological, financial and educational loss to the state of Wisconsin resulting from his departure that denying a man equal treatment in the name of a morality far less certain than what Professor Carpick taught is an insidious form of the taxes they abhor.
Richard Ehmer
Engineering Mechanics-Astronautics
