NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nashville Mayor Karl Dean says offering benefits to the same sex partners of Metro employees is the right thing to do and is a matter of tolerance.
Dean told The Tennessean (http://bit.ly/GNILwn ) he supports the idea as long as it makes financial sense for the city.
A panel is being formed to study the cost of such a policy change.
Dean, a Democrat, says he's not "driven by a political agenda."
Instead, Dean says, he's following the corporate world in liberalizing benefits policies to make the city more attractive. Dean cites the three T's coined by author Richard Florida, who says a flourishing city has technology, talent and tolerance.