Oregon’s new domestic partnership law has gone into effect, and as of Monday, Feb. 4, same-sex couples throughout the state are eligible to register as legal domestic partners.

Declaration of Domestic Partnership forms are now available at county clerk offices throughout Oregon, including Wallowa County.

“They come in and get a form, which they fill out and have notorized,” said Wallowa County Clerk Dana Roberts on the first day of the new law. “They bring them back to us and pay $50, the same as a marriage license.”

Roberts said if the couple wants a certified copy, it would cost an extra $4, which is a standard fee for such copies.

As of press time, no couples had yet filed as domestic partners in Wallowa County.

Oregon’s domestic partnership law grants committed same-sex couples certain rights and responsibilities, including the right to participate in medical and end of life decisions, the ability to resolve inheritance and estate issues, insure parental rights and obligations, obtain health benefits, and gain access to their children’s school or medical records.

The Oregon legislature enacted a domestic partnership law last year, making Oregon the ninth state granting some of the same benefits of marriage to same sex couples.

On Feb. 1, a federal judge lifted an injunction that prevented the law from taking effect on Jan. 1 as planned. The injunction was put in place when a group challenged the number of petition signatures required to challenge the law on the ballot.