Yet.

On Jan. 1, AB 2005, the California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003 goes into effect, and Sunnyvale—in compliance with state law—will extend employment benefits to registered domestic partners of city employees.

The city's open enrollment period—for a staff member to apply for or change their benefit plans—began Sept. 15 and runs until Oct. 15, so employees with domestic partners can take part for the first time this year.

McLeod said that while she's excited to finally be eligible for the benefits with her partner, the change is overdue.

"I just think it's something that should have been done a few years ago," McLeod said. "It's about equity, making sure everyone gets a fair shake."

The city council looked into granting the benefits earlier than the Jan. 1 start date, but because because of the time necessary to change city policy—and because Jan. 1 is less than 3 months away—the council decided it was best for the city to proceed with standard enrollment and allow it to go into effect with the new year.

McLeod estimates that there are a number of city employees who could potentially take advantage of these benefits, but only a small handful of them are out of the closet and comfortable coming forward with their sexual orientation. She thinks the benefits could help make some employees more comfortable in the workplace.

"It's important that not only is the option there, but it lets employees known that their employer will not discriminate against them should they chose to come forward," McLeod said.

In addition to making the workplace more comfortable for current employees, McLeod thinks that offering generous packages for all couples will make Sunnyvale more attractive to all job applicants, widening the talent pool of potential employees.

"It's actually very positive for human resources, because it's a very attractive recruitment tool," she said.

Sunnyvale Deputy Communications Officer Adam Levermore-Rich said that while the law does not state that cities must offer the same plans given to traditional married couples, the city chose to simply open up all available packages to domestic partners just as they're open to spouses of city employees.

"There's no differences between the packages domestic partners get and what spouses get," Levermore-Rich said. "Across the board, if we offer it to one group, we offer it to the other."