(USA) - Opponents of a new domestic partnership law for Gay couples failed to gather enough signatures to put a referendum on the November 2008 ballot. The secretary of state's office said Monday that volunteers who spent the summer collecting signatures to allow voters to weigh in on domestic partnerships fell 116 signatures short of the 55,179 needed to qualify for the ballot. That means that on Jan. 1 Gay couples in Oregon will be able to enter into domestic partnerships allowing them most of the state benefits of marriage, such as inheritance rights. It does not affect federal benefits, such as Social Security.
Note: Read more on Oregon Live [4]
