Same-Sex Marriage Update

[MsTinkerbelly]

TIMING THE KNOT

As Dying Lesbian Petitions To Wed Partner, NM County Clerk Begins Issuing Gay Marriage Licenses

Shortly after a terminally-ill woman from Pojoaque, New Mexico sought an emergency court order allowing her to legally marry her partner of 21 years in hopes that their three children would be protected, a clerk from Dona Ana County began issuing same-sex marriage licenses.

Jen Roper has a life-threatening form of brain cancer that has caused her health to severely deteriorate in the past few months. Together with the woman she considers her wife, Angelique Neuman, they have raised three kids, the eldest of whom is currently in basic training in the U.S. Army.

With the help of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), Roper and Neuman filed the emergency order today. Then, unexpectedly, the clerk in Dona Ana County decided that the “state’s marriage statutes are gender neutral and do not expressly prohibit Dona Ana County from issuing marriage licenses to same-gender couples,” according to a statement obtained by the AP.

“Any further denial of marriage licenses to these couples violates the United States and New Mexico Constitution and the New Mexico Human Rights Act,” Ellins said. “Dona Ana County is upholding New Mexico law by issuing these marriage licenses, and I see no reason to make committed couples in Dona Ana County wait another minute to marry.”

County clerks usually face challenges when they take the law into their own hands like that, and the issue may ultimately have to be resolved in court. But for now, couples have immediately descended on Las Cruces, NM where they began receiving their marriage licenses. Dona Ana is the first county in New Mexico to effectively allow gay marriage, though a series of lawsuits are pending in the state on that very issue, including Roper’s and Neuman’s.

However, Geraldine Salazar, clerk of Santa Fe County where Roper and Neuman live, said she does not plan on following Dona Ana’s lead because of those lawsuits. Just yesterday, a gay couple from Santa Fe asked the New Mexico Supreme Court to to streamline the way they handle same-sex marriage lawsuits. Roper and Neuman hope to add their voice to the chorus of change taking New Mexico by storm.

“I want to know that my family will be protected if I pass away,” Roper said in a statement from the NCLR. “Angelique and I have been married in our hearts for 21 years and raised three wonderful children together. Because of my illness, we do not have the luxury of waiting years for the courts to decide whether loving, committed same-sex couples can marry in New Mexico. For us, the time is now.”


Full story here: http://www.queerty.com/new-mexico-ga...#ixzz2ciMHELKk

[MsTinkerbelly]

August 28, 2013, 12:18 pm

Marriage Equality in New Mexico

By ANDREW ROSENTHAL


When arguing against same-sex marriage, opponents often stress that marriage has always been defined as a union between a man and a woman.

But our laws, at least, often did not wade into the question of gender one way or another — until the 1990s, when anti-gay-marriage forces began lobbying state legislatures to revise state constitutions, and pushed the Defense of Marriage Act through Congress. More recently, in a smaller, but growing, number of states, marriage-equality advocates have succeeded in establishing — through the courts or legislative action or voter referendums — that all adults can marry the person of their choosing, regardless of gender.

Alone among the states, New Mexico never jumped on the definitional bandwagon. It never banned same-sex unions, and it never specifically permitted them, either. And in the absence of clarity, American standards of equality and non-discrimination won out.

Last week, the clerk of Dona Ana county decided to recognize same-sex unions. Then a judge in Santa Fe directed the clerk in that county to begin issuing marriage licenses. On Monday, a state judge ruled that marriage between couples of the same sex is entirely legal and ordered the clerk of Bernalillo County, which includes Albuquerque, to issue licenses to gay and lesbian couples.

The Associated Press reported that Judge Alan Malott “had been asked only to order that the state recognize, on her death certificate, a dying woman’s marriage Friday in Santa Fe to her longtime partner.”

But he went a step farther and said that New Mexico’s constitution bans discrimination in marriage against a particular group of citizens. The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico was, naturally, elated. Laura Schauer called the ruling “monumental.”

The ruling does not cover the rest of New Mexico’s counties, and so it seems inevitable that the New Mexico state legislature, which has Democratic majorities, and its Republican governor, Susana Martinez, are about to come under intense political fire from the far right to amend the constitution. They should resist.

[MsTinkerbelly]

Same-sex couples can file joint tax returns, IRS says

Reuters

All legal same-sex marriages will be recognized for U.S. federal tax purposes, regardless of where the couple lives, government says.


WASHINGTON — All legal same-sex marriages will be recognized for U.S. federal tax purposes, the Obama administration said on Thursday, allowing gay couples to claim the same tax benefits that heterosexual couples do.

As expected after a landmark Supreme Court ruling in June, the U.S. Treasury and Internal Revenue Service said:

"The ruling applies regardless of whether the couple lives in a jurisdiction that recognizes same-sex marriage or a jurisdiction that does not recognize same-sex marriage."

[MsTinkerbelly]

Gay troops prep for September marriage spree, put wedding parties on ice


By Bill Briggs, NBC News contributor

September marks nuptial season across part of the American military as gay and lesbian troops cash in new, Pentagon-granted leaves to tie the knot.

Starting Tuesday, the Pentagon is allowing gay troops to take travel leaves for up to seven days — or as many 10 days for those stationed abroad — as long as those service members live 100-plus miles away from a state that allows same-sex marriages.

Scores of service members are draining their savings just to pay for airfare, hotels and rental cars — common, logistical necessities for obtaining a marriage certificate in one of the 13 states where same-sex marriage is legal, advocates say.

While many of these unions may lack champagne-soaked celebrations, they are fueled by a practical brand of urgency: gaining immediate, military-family benefits, said Stephen Peters, executive director of the American Military Partner Association (AMPA).

After the Supreme Court’s decision to scrap the Defense of Marriage Act, leaders at the Department of Defense announced that same-sex spouses of military members would become eligible this month for an array of federal benefits previously offered only to heterosexual spouses, from housing to health care. At the same time, DOD authorized the special leaves for troops seeking same-sex marriages.

"This will provide accelerated access to the full range of benefits offered to married military couples throughout the Department, and help level the playing field between opposite-sex and same-sex couples seeking to be married," Lt. Cmdr. Nate Christensen, a Pentagon spokesman, said via email. "We do not have an estimate of how many people this will impact."

A week to wed

At least three service members who work with AMPA have all hatched similar marriage plans for this month: quick trips to California to obtain licenses during their authorized leaves with festive wedding parties to follow sometime next year — or beyond.

"For us, California is the easiest way to go," said Melissa Jones, an Army E-3 (private first class), based at Fort Hood, Texas. She and her girlfriend, Danielle Nelson, have booked a seven-day trip to San Diego later this month. "We’re going to pretty much just get it done at the county courthouse. We’re not going to have a ceremony out there. We’ll do that back here with family and friends."

To help pay for their flight and hotel room, Jones and Nelson, both 20, cashed in their large collection of loose change plus $450 in recent bingo winnings.

“Many of our families simply can’t afford the costs of traveling across the country to get married in addition to having a large, expensive ceremony,” said Peters, executive director of the AMPA. “Many can barely afford to travel to a city clerk’s office across the country, wait the required number of days for waiting periods, and finally take care of the paperwork, only to hope for a larger and more formal ceremony at a later date.

“This all boils down to the financial burden they face in having to travel across country — or around the world, for many — a challenge that heterosexual (military) couples are not forced to face in order to care for their family,” Peters added.

'Just for the paper'

Despite the initial costs, the military benefits Jones will gain through marriage will save her thousands of dollars in the long run.
A marriage license will allow Jones to qualify for "base allowance housing," under which the military subsidizes service members' off-base apartments so long as they are legally married or are raising a child or children. That alone saves the couple about $700 per month, Jones said. And as a military spouse, Nelson's college tuition will be federally covered, instantly saving her an additional $4,000 per semester.

If Nelson falls ill after she's married, she can receive her medical treatment at Ford Hood thanks to her new military-family identification card and the official military decal she'll receive for her car. Currently, she must pay for medications out of pocket. The couple has been together for a year and a half, meeting two months before Jones headed to basic training.

"A lot of the urgency of this is that we’re missing out on a lot of benefits," Jones said. "It's not like we’re doing it for the money, but it’s going to help pay for things. I’m 20 years old and I’m helping her pay for college. I also have a car loan and an apartment. We both have full-time jobs. But getting the benefits, she can stop working and can just focus on school.

"I wear (an engagement) ring. People are always asking: 'Are you married?' I’m like: 'Yes and no.' People don't understand that. So I tell them that I'm gay and I have go 1,500 miles away just to get married," Jones said. "It’s not like we’re not going to enjoy it while we're there. But it kind of is just for the paper."

[MsTinkerbelly]

Pennsylvania judge promises quick ruling in marriage equality case

September 5, 2013fte

By Jacob Combs

LGBT Legal Cases Marriage equality Marriage Equality Trials


After yesterday’s oral arguments in a case challenging whether a Pennsylvania county official acted improperly when he began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples despite the state’s ban on marriage equality, the judge hearing the case has promised to issue a speedy decision. From the AP:


Commonwealth Court Judge Dan Pellegrini said a central issue is “how power is allocated in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

“What’s before us today is generally, ‘Who decides?’” Pellegrini told the full courtroom in Harrisburg at the start of oral arguments.

Pellegrini said he was not weighing the constitutionality of the same-sex marriage ban. But questions about its constitutionality arose repeatedly, and Pellegrini said he was concerned about the potential effect of his ruling on various levels of government.

There are several procedural issues in the case that Pellegrini must consider before issuing a final ruling. First, he must determine whether Pennsylvania’s Health Department has legal standing to seek a court order compelling the county official–D. Bruce Hanes–to stop issuing marriage licenses. In addition, the judge must decide whether Hanes is a ‘judicial officer.’ If he is, the state’s Supreme Court may be the only court with jurisdiction over the matter.

By the end of business on Tuesday of this week, Hanes had issued 164 licenses to same-sex couples. We’ll have full coverage of the ruling on EqualityOnTrial when it’s handed down

[blackboot]

Hawaii Marriage Equality

Monday, September 9. Governor Neil Abercrombie just announced a special session of the Legislature being called on October 28th to pass Marriage Equality!

Here comes Hawaii!!!

[MsTinkerbelly]

Wash. Native American Tribe Recognizes Marriage Equality


BY Sunnivie Brydum.

September 09 2013 6:15 PM ET

The Colville Tribal Council of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Nation voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to recognize same-sex marriages, according to The Wenatchee World. The ruling will extend to all of the tribe's more than 9,300 members, about half of whom live on the Colville Reservation in north-central Washington State, according to the World.

Council chairman Michael Finley told the paper that the tribe has long recognized and respected LGBT identities, usually referred to as two-spirit in the tribal vernacular. Last week's vote means two-spirited Colvilles will be treated equally and with respect, Finley said. The tribe had already permitted members in same-sex partnerships to add their spouse to their insurance and other benefits plans.

Although Washington State voters approved marriage equality last November, federally recognized Native American tribes are self-governed and aren't subject to state laws.

Several Native American tribes around the country have formally recognized same-sex marriages in recent years. In 2008 the Coquille Indian Tribe on the southern Oregon coast became the first Native American tribe to recognize marriage equality, and in 2011 the Suquamish Tribe in Suquamish, Wash., also approved marriage equality. In March of this year, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians in Michigan also began to recognize same-sex marriages, when it oversaw tribe member Tim LaCroix's marriage to his now-husband, Gene Barfield. The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians in Michigan and the Santa Ysabel Tribe of California also recognize same-sex marriages, bringing the total number of U.S. tribes with formal marriage equality to six, according to Equality on Trial.