Tag: same-sex marriage

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Mexico: Gay Couple Wins Right to Marry in Chihuahua

Congratulations to the happy couple – marriage equality is happening in Mexico!

A gay couple in Chihuahua, Mexico, who first filed for a marriage license in April can legally wed after the state declined to file a challenge to the petition, a local judge ruled Monday, according to Spanish-language news site El Pueblo.

Tony and Tomás tried to marry April 30 but were denied a license by the Civil Registry of the State of Chihuahua. On August 22, a district judge ruled that the state must provide marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and gave government officials ten days to file a formal objection to the order. The government made no such move, so Tuesday, the state legal adviser confirmed to press outlets that the couple can be married.

(source)

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Minneapolis launches new campaign pitching marriage equality to Illinois residents

Minneapolis Mayor Rybak (center)

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak is in Chicago today to launch “Marry Me In Minneapolis,” a campaign that invites Illinoisans to visit his city for their gay marriages.

Mayor Rybak unveiled the campaign at a press conference at Center on Halsted Sept. 5.

“Chicago is my kind of town, but right now, it’s a second city in human rights,” Rybak told reporters.

Chicago is missing out on tourism and entertainment dollars, Rybak said, money that Minneapolis would welcome.

The new ad campaign invites Chicagoans to tie the knot in Minneapolis.

“Hey Chicago!” one ad reads. “I want to marry you in Minneapolis!”

Rybak’s pitch aims to highlight the economic urgency of passing same-sex marriage in Illinois as well as bolster his city’s tourism industry.

A recent Williams Institute study found that marriage equality in Illinois could generate $103 million in spending from Illinois couples alone. Out-of-state marriages could add to that number. Windy City Times found that 70 percent of Iowa’s same-sex marriages were between out-of-state couples. Those numbers are expected to increase as the effective repeal of the federal Defense of Marriage Act has opened up a laundry list of rights to married same-sex couples, not available to Illinois civil union couples.

That is a reality Rybak wants to capitalize on.

He wants Chicago couples to hop a flight to Minneapolis and spend their wedding dollars there, he said.. He is making the same pitch in Milwaukee, Madison and Denver as part of a tour targeting midwest cities without marriage equality.

(source)

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Quote of the day: PA Montgomery County Clerk Bruce Hanes

“I don’t see myself as a crusader.

“Some people have said I’ve broken the law, which I may have done. But I’ve broken an unconstitutional law. It’s not about me. It’s a serious equal protection argument at stake here.

“I don’t want to speculate about the outcome of the case. But I firmly believe that I’m on the right side of history.” – Pennsylvania Montgomery County Clerk Bruce Hanes

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Attorney General: Military will grant all benefits to spouses of gay military

The Department of Justice will not enforce Title 38, a law barring gay veterans from spousal benefits, the Washington Blade reports:

In a letter dated Sept. 4, U.S. Attorney Eric Holder notifies U.S. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) of the change in the way the Justice Department will enforce Title 38 of the U.S. code.

“[I]n light of subsequent developments and my recommendation, the President has directed the Executive Branch to cease enforcement of Sections 101(3) and 101(31) of Title 38,” Holder writes. “Decisions by the Executive Branch not to enforce federal laws are appropriately rare. Nonetheless, for the reasons described below, the unique circumstances here warrant non-enforcement.”

From the White House via press release:

The language, contained within Title 38 of the U.S. Code, has, until now, prevented the Executive Branch from providing spousal benefits to veterans—and in some instances active-duty service members and reservists—who are in same-sex marriages recognized under state law.

In a letter to Congressional leaders, Holder stated that the President’s decision was consistent with the Court’s decision in Windsor in June.

“Although the Supreme Court did not directly address the constitutionality of the Title 38 provisions in Windsor, the reasoning of the opinion strongly supports the conclusion that those provisions are unconstitutional under the Fifth Amendment,” Holder wrote.

(via Towleroad)

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New Mexico: And we have county number 8!

Add Los Alamos county to the growing list of counties issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples in New Mexico. 

The County Clerk, Sharon Stover, didn’t want to jump on the bandwagon, but a district judge ordered the licenses be issued:

Janet Newton and Maria Thibodeau were denied a marriage license last week and they filed a lawsuit that led to a ruling by District Court Judge Sheri Raphaelson that same-sex couples are entitled to be married in New Mexico.

Los Alamos County Clerk Sharon Stover went to court Wednesday to defend her decision, but the judge ruled against the clerk.

Seven of the state’s 33 counties are issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples and number 8, Grant County, plans to start granting licenses next week.

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New Mexico: 7th county now issuing marriage licenses

Grant County becomes the seventh county in New Mexico issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples.

LGBTQ Nation reports:

Grant County Clerk Robert Zamarripa said his office will comply with a judge’s ruling issued Tuesday and will begin providing the licenses next week. “We’ll let the Legislature and courts decide after this what needs to be done,” Zamarripa said in a telephone interview.

His comments came shortly after District Judge J.C. Robinson issued an order requiring the clerk to issue marriage licenses “on a nondiscriminatory basis” to same-sex couples.

Meanwhile, the county clerk for Los Alamos county will go back to court after defying a judge’s order to start issuing the licenses to same sex couples.

The Albuquerque Journal reports:

Los Alamos County Clerk Sharon Stover said on Tuesday that she will defy a court order to issue marriage licenses to couples regardless of sexual preference.

Stover made the announcement in response to a judge’s ruling last week that she issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples or appear in court to explain why that shouldn’t happen.

A district court hearing on the matter is set for tomorrow.

Stover said in a statement that New Mexico’s marriage laws haven’t been changed since the 1960s, and the law includes a marriage license application with sections for male and female applicants.

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Pennsylvania: Gov. Corbett says comparing gays marrying to children marrying was “inappropriate”

Republican Gov. Tom Corbett said Thursday it was inappropriate for his lawyers to include a reference to children in a legal brief involving same-sex couples seeking marriage licenses.

Corbett’s administration has filed a lawsuit seeking to block same-sex marriage licenses in suburban Philadelphia, where Montgomery County Register of Wills D. Bruce Hanes has issued more than 150 to gay and lesbian couples since July 24.

State attorneys, in a court filing Wednesday, made an analogy to a pair of 12-year-olds, saying if the children were issued a marriage license and tried to defend it in court, they wouldn’t be taken seriously because the license was never valid.

“Had the clerk issued licenses to twelve-year-olds in violation of state law, would anyone seriously contend that each twelve-year-old has a legally enforceable ‘interest’ in his ‘license’ and is entitled to a hearing on the validity of his ‘license,’ else his due process rights be violated?” the brief said. “Obviously not.”

Corbett released a statement Thursday calling it a poor analogy:

“The case involving Montgomery County revolves around a very basic question: Does a public official have the authority to disregard state law based on his own personal legal opinion about the constitutionality of a statute?” he said. “The analogy chosen in the legal brief filed on August 28th is inappropriate.”

Equality Pennsylvania issued a statement earlier Thursday taking his lawyers to task over the legal argument:

“If there is one thing we can all agree on, it’s that all people deserve to be treated with respect,” said the group’s executive director, Ted Martin. “The statements made by the attorneys do not simply defend the laws of the state; they deny loving, committed same-sex couples the dignity they deserve.”

(source)

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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg to become 1st Supreme Court justice to conduct same-sex marriage ceremony

Ok, let’s roll “special” and “bragging rights” all into one big same-sex marriage ball.

Via the Washington Post:

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will become the first Supreme Court member to conduct a same-sex marriage ceremony Saturday when she officiates at the Washington wedding of Kennedy Center President Michael M. Kaiser.

The gala wedding of Kaiser and economist John Roberts at the performing arts center brings together the nation’s highest court and the capital’s high society and will mark a new milepost in recognition of same-sex unions.

Ginsburg and Kaiser are close friends. She is perhaps the Supreme Court’s most ardent supporter of the fine arts, especially opera. Kaiser, 59, has been at the helm of the Kennedy Center since 2001 and is an internationally recognized expert in arts management and one of Washington’s most influential civic leaders.

“I can’t imagine someone I’d rather be married by” than Ginsburg, Kaiser said in an interview.

Umm, hello? A US Supreme Court justice? Yeah, pretty fab officiant, there.

Although, I will say – when my husband Michael and I got married in Toronto in 2003, the legality of same-sex marriage was new. But Senior Justice Lauren Marshall generously agreed to marry Michael and I. And it was as special and memorable as any wedding ever could be.

AND – being the senior justice, she had the ‘best’ courtroom, which happened to be the courtroom the movie CHICAGO the Musical was shot in. So we knew we were in the right place… 🙂

Congrats to Michael Kaiser and John Roberts. I hope your day is as special as mine was.

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All legal same-sex marriages to be recognized by US Treasury regardless of state of residency

Big news for same-sex married couples as the Federal government has now issued a ruling by Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew that says, in terms of tax policy, the state of celebration is what counts – NOT the state of residence.

Yep, the ruling applies even to gay couples that live in states where their union is not recognized — so long as they were married in a state that allows same-sex marriage.

From the Huffington Post:

Thursday’s ruling by Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew provides a uniform policy for the IRS; the state of celebration — where the wedding took place — now trumps the state of residency when it comes to federal tax status for same-sex married couples.

“Today’s ruling provides certainty and clear, coherent tax filing guidance for all legally married same-sex couples nationwide. It provides access to benefits, responsibilities and protections under federal tax law that all Americans deserve,” Lew said in a statement. “This ruling also assures legally married same-sex couples that they can move freely throughout the country knowing that their federal filing status will not change.”

Under the new Treasury policy, all federal tax provisions where marriage is a factor, including filing status, employee benefits, IRA contributions, earned income, child tax credits, and income, gift and estate taxes, will apply to same sex couples regardless of where they live.

The Human Rights Campaign responds:

“With today’s ruling, committed and loving gay and lesbian married couples will now be treated equally under our nation’s federal tax laws, regardless of what state they call home,” said Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin. “These families finally have access to crucial tax benefits and protections previously denied to them under the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act.”

The ruling does not apply to those in registered domestic partnerships or civil unions. So, for states like New Jersey, where the governor is trying to argue that civil unions are equal to full marriage – this underlines how civil unions and domestic partnerships fall short of full equality.