Today the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform voted 23-12 in favor of the Domestic Partner Benefits and Obligations Act (DPBO). If enacted, DPBO will provide the same family benefits to federal civilian employees in LGBT-headed families with same-sex domestic partners as are provided to employees with different-sex spouses.

The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, today condemned the brutal murder of Jorge Steven López, 19, in Cayey, Puerto Rico.  López’s body was discovered on an isolated road, dismembered and burned, last Friday.  Late Monday night, police arrested Juan A. Martinez in connection with the crime.  Puerto Rican media outlets report Martinez confessed to killing López after discovering his female gender presentation did not match his male sex, and that Martínez plans to use a "gay panic/trans panic" defense in court.

Jack Frost is nipping at your pet's nose. Winter is here again, and cold weather can be uncomfortable and dangerous to your pet.

As people become increasingly aware of the environment and how the choices they make impact it, there is also a trend toward becoming more “green” or environmentally friendly. This is especially true when holding an event or party, because there are usually so many people involved, and if not done in a green way, an event has the potential to produce a large amount of trash and to use up a lot of resources. Yet one of the challenges that people planning events often face is how to hold a green party that is also creative and cost effective.

Centaur Entertainment, New York’s premiere dance music record label, announces the upcoming release of “Party Groove: White Party 10,” the Official benefit CD for White Party Week held in Miami from November 25-30. JustCircuit.com’s “DJ/Producer of the Year” recipient Randy Bettis has mixed the new White Party album which will be available exclusively in Miami during White Party Week, and in stores nationwide beginning December 8, including iTunes Worldwide.

In celebration of “National Adoption Month,” the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, will host a national web chat on a variety of adoption issues.  During the discussion, HRC and several child welfare experts will highlight the unique opportunities and challenges facing the LGBT community with regard to adoption from foster care.  November is National Adoption Month, a month set aside to raise awareness about the adoption of children and youth from foster care.

A compound in coffee has been found to be estrogenic in studies by Texas AgriLife Research scientists.

Though the studies have not been conducted to determine recommended consumption amounts, scientists say the compound, called trigonelline or "trig," may be a factor in estrogen-dependent breast cancer but beneficial against colon cancer development.

The Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, announced today that as Congressional action looms on the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), it is extending the grassroots "No Excuses" campaign to increase constituent contact with Congress and awareness of the comprehensive website: www.PassENDANow.org.