In a jaw-dropping political twist that’s got the Bay Area’s LGBTQ+ community clutching their pearls, San Francisco Supervisor Matt Dorsey is exploring the possibility of revoking the city’s domestic partner benefits law - and he’s doing it as an openly gay man.

The backstory? Dorsey wants to investigate potential cost savings by repealing the Equal Benefits Ordinance (EBO), a landmark 1996 law that required companies doing business with San Francisco to provide equal benefits to same-sex domestic partners.

Wait, What Just Happened?

Former SF Supervisor Tom Ammiano didn’t mince words, calling the proposal “totally misplaced” given the current political climate of anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment. Dorsey argues it’s about fiscal responsibility, noting that only 45% of large businesses currently offer domestic partner benefits now that same-sex marriage is legal.

The Political Tightrope

The proposal is a high-stakes political gamble in a city known for pioneering LGBTQ+ rights. Dorsey claims he’d include a failsafe clause that would reinstate benefits if the Supreme Court ever overturns same-sex marriage protections.

The Bigger Picture

While Dorsey frames this as a cost-cutting measure, critics see it as potentially undermining hard-won LGBTQ+ protections. As a well-paid civil servant with a secure future, his perspective feels disconnected from the community’s ongoing struggles for equality.