States that Currently Allow Same Sex Marriage
With the same sex marriage debate occurring throughout the nation, it is no wonder that there are a few states that allow same sex marriages. As of January 2010, there are five states and one federal district within the US that recognize and allow same sex marriages. Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, Iowa and the District of Columbia all have laws that allow same sex marriages.
In 2003, Massachusetts made national news when it became the first state in the nation to legalize same sex marriages when the state's Supreme Court ruled that the denial of marriage rights to same sex couples was a violation of the equal protection clause of the Massachusetts Constitution. Despite repeated attempts to amend the state's constitution to explicitly define marriage as between a man and a woman in the years following this landmark decision, the state of the law remains the same.
California was the second state to allow same-sex marriages, but voters in the state rescinded that right through a ballot initiative on November 4, 2008 (see below).
In November 2008, Connecticut became the third state in the union to legalize the marriage of gay and lesbian couples. In Connecticut, same sex couples enjoy the same rights and responsibilities as opposite-sex married couples.
In early April, 2009, Iowa's Supreme Court held that the state's law defining marriage as solely between a man and a woman violated the state's constitution. The first same sex marriages were performed in Iowa later than month.
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In September 2009, Vermont became the fourth state in the nation to legalize same sex marriages and was the first state to do so through legislation rather than judicial opinion. Even though the state's governor vetoed the bill, the state legislature rallied enough votes to override the veto and the bill became law.
New Hampshire recently passed legislation that will made same sex marriages legal starting on January 1, 2010. This makes New Hampshire the fifth state in the Union to recognize same sex marriage.
Lastly, the District of Columbia Council overwhelmingly passed legislation, by an 11-2 vote, in the early part of December, 2009 that recognized same sex marriages as a legal union. This law has come under heavy criticism, both from the people within the District, as well as the state of Maryland, which is currently attempting to pass a law that would ban same sex marriage. However, the law in the District of Columbia has already withstood one legal challenge, with a judge ruling that a the District can ban any vote to ban same sex marriage because it would be a violation of human rights.
Same Sex Marriage in California
California has been the site of some of the most rigorous fighting in the same sex marriage debate. In June of 2008, California made national headlines when the California Supreme Court ruled in In re Marriage Cases that the state's ban on same sex marriage violated the state's constitutional provisions regarding equal protection. This ruling effectively made California the largest hot spot for gay and lesbian marriages in the nation for a short time.
However, it wasn't long after this decision came down that a ballot measure, known as Proposition 8, made it onto the ballot for the November 2008 election. Prop 8 was written to amend the state constitution to explicitly define a marriage as a legally binding union between a man and a woman. Prop 8 passed on November 4, 2008 by a slim margin, effectively banning same sex marriages in California.
A vigorous legal battle ensued with much finger pointing and posturing on both sides. Eventually, a lawsuit was filed by Prop 8 opponents that challenged the validity of the proposition on procedural grounds. Eventually, the California Supreme Court announced that Prop 8 was valid and the state's constitution was amended, meaning that no new same sex marriages would be performed in California. However, the question remained what would happen to the thousands of same sex couples that were married between the June 2008 court decision and the November 2008 proposition. The California Supreme Court ruled that these marriages were legal when performed, meaning that they still carried legal weight and are valid.
On January 10, 2010, the nation's first trial on same sex couples' right to marry started in a federal courtroom in San Francisco, California. Even before the lawsuit challenging Prop 8 began, there was much controversy, over everything from campaign funding to whether or not the trial should be broadcast online. The United States Supreme Court eventually prohibited the publication of Prop 8 trial videos on the internet.
Civil Unions in New Jersey
In the early part of 2010, the New Jersey legislature rejected a bill that would allow same sex couples to be legally wed in the state. However, same sex couples in New Jersey can currently enter civil unions which are the legal equivalent of marriage. These unions carry many of the same rights and responsibilities as a marriage including:
Family law rights like divorce, child custody, alimony, spousal support, division of property, annulments
Tort rights typically reserved for spouses such as wrongful death and loss of consortium
Rights typically found in hospitals such as durable power of attorney and visitation
State joint tax filing status, and
The right to get the property of a deceased partner that dies intestate (without a will)
However, there are certain restrictions that arise with civil unions that are not present with a legal marriage. For instance, the rights and responsibilities that come with a civil union only apply to the couple as long as they remain within the state that granted their civil union. In addition, these civil unions do not enjoy the benefits that a marriage enjoys under federal law, such as social security, immigration and tax benefits. Lastly, there is no law that says that states other than the state that granted the civil union have to give the above listed benefits.
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