D.C. Marriage Recognition Questions & Answers
Frequently asked questions about the new D.C. law recognizing marriages by same-sex couples legally entered into in other jurisdictions.
What is the new law and how did it come into effect?
On May 5, 2009, the District of Columbia Council voted 12-1 to pass the Jury and Marriage Act of 2009, which provides, in relevant part, that “A marriage legally entered into in another jurisdiction between 2 persons of the same-sex…shall be recognized in the District.” Mayor Adrian Fenty signed the bill on May 6, 2009, and it went through a required Congressional review period. Opponents of the legislation unsuccessfully attempted to block the legislation through a proposed ballot measure that was ruled improper by the D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics and a D.C. Court. http://www.hrcbackstory.org/2009/06/breaking-judge-blocks-request-to-stall-dc-marriage-recognition-law/
When does the new law take effect?
The new law is effective July 7, 2009.
What do I have to do if I’m a D.C. resident who is legally married in another jurisdiction?
You do not have to get married in D.C. or otherwise register your marriage in D.C. The law expressly provides that your marriage, if legally entered into in another jurisdiction, “shall be recognized in the District.” Starting July 7, 2009, your marriage is entitled to the same legal respect and recognition as any other marriage in the District. If you want to receive spousal or family benefits at work, it will be up to you to inform your employer that you are married (or to inform anyone else who is required to recognize your marriage), and it is possible that you will have to provide a marriage certificate. However, if, for example, your employer does not require different-sex couples to provide a marriage certificate in order to prove the existence of their marriage, then you should not be required to do so either.
What rights and responsibilities will same-sex couples who legally marry outside D.C. receive in the District?
Same-sex spouses will receive the same rights and responsibilities provided to different-sex spouses under District law. According to a report compiled by the Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance of Washington, D.C. (GLAA), there are over 200 such rights and responsibilities, including spousal employee benefits for District employees, health care decisionmaking for an incapacitated spouse, hospital visitation, property rights, and inheritance rights. http://glaa.org/archive/2004/glaamarriagereport.pdf (Please note that the GLAA report is from 2003; to the best of our knowledge, the listing of spousal rights and responsibilities in D.C. remains up to date, however, other information listed in the report has changed—for instance, information provided regarding the domestic partner law in the District.) Married same-sex couples do not receive access to the more than 1,100 federal rights and responsibilities associated with marriage, because of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, and the new law in D.C. will not change that.
It is important to note that the D.C. government issued an opinion in 2005 stating that same-sex couples married outside D.C. may not file a joint or combined-separate District income tax return because D.C. law requires that a married couple must have filed and been eligible to file a joint federal tax return in order to file a joint or combined-separate District income tax return. http://www.dcwatch.com/govern/cfo050503.htm Among other things, the federal Defense of Marriage Act prevents married same-sex couples from filing joint federal tax returns. We recommend that you consult a tax professional or attorney to determine what steps you should take with regard to income tax filing.
In what jurisdictions can same-sex couples in D.C. marry and have those marriages recognized in the District?
Same-sex couples who legally marry in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont (as of September 1, 2009), Maine (as of September 2009, pending possible ballot measure), New Hampshire (as of January 1, 2010), or, outside the United States in Belgium, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Spain, or Sweden, will be entitled to have their marriages legally recognized in D.C.
Can my same-sex partner and I get married in the District?
No, the new law does not permit same-sex couples to legally marry in D.C.; the new law only provides that marriages by same-sex couples legally entered into outside D.C. will be recognized in the District.
What does the law mean if I have entered into a registered domestic partnership with my partner?
This law will not affect the D.C. domestic partnership registry, which will continue to be available to both same-sex and different-sex couples. Couples who have registered or will register as domestic partners in the District, but are not married outside the District, will continue to have access to most of the rights and responsibilities available to spouses under D.C. law. Domestic partnerships will not automatically convert to marriages.