
According to the Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a marriage for Federal purposes is a legal union between a man and a woman and “a spouse” refers to a person of the opposite sex. The Federal law therefore, does not recognize same sex marriages in spite of many states legalizing the same. However, the exclusion of same sex marriages in the Federal law has been a debate over the years. Many have argues that the DOMA is unconstitutional and that it violates the rights of citizens. This is especially the case in taxes, as same sex marriage partners are not allowed to file IRS taxes jointly (as is the case with their heterosexual counterparts).
There are several civil rights activists who are pushing for the inclusion of same sex marriage into the Federal law. Activist groups such as “Refuse to Lie” advocate to their followers to indicate in their tax returns that they are married according to the state law and file separately only because the Federal law requires so.
Besides such activist movements, there are also pending court cases that challenge the constitutionality of the DOMA. The Department of Justice under the Obama administration, which is the guardian of the Federal law, has chosen not to defend the DOMA and instead, has opted to agree with the opponents that indeed, the DOMA is unconstitutional. This has left conservatives with the tough task of defending the DOMA outside government help. The court cases are still pending in court. Besides these legal battles, there are also further developments that have worked to complicate the position of the IRS to turn down a same-sex-marriage option to file jointly.
In 2011, New York joined the band wagon and legalized same sex marriages in the state. However, the legalizing of same sex marriages in New York has a twist that makes the DOMA stand on marriage even more complicated. The New York same sex law does not require any residence status in New York. This means that citizens of the U.S. from other states can come into New York, get married (as same sex couples), and go back to their states of residence. Given that New York is a major state in America, this means that same sex marriage will proliferate, even in the conservative states that still uphold heterosexual relationships only. According to analysts, this “no residence” aspect will increase the pressure against the legality of the DOMA.
One of the activists at the helm of the fight for the inclusion of same sex marriages into the Federal law is William Stevenson. Stevenson is a member of both the IRS Commissioner’s Advisory Group and the National Council for Taxpayer Advocacy. He is also the president of the National Tax Consultants, an advocacy organization operating from Merrick, New York. Stevenson has been in the forefront of fighting for various taxpayers’ rights in the past with considerable success. Therefore, supporting the action for inclusion of same sex marriages into the Federal law from a tax perspective has been seen as a great plus for the DOMA opponents. As part of his activism, Stevenson is now circulating a letter that is challenging the IRS on its stand against same sex couples filing jointly. In his letter, Stevenson highlights the plight of the new New York law that provides for non-residency in the same sex marriage law and the tax disadvantages that the same sex couples have in comparison to heterosexual couples. One of the main disadvantages for same sex couples is being excluded from the advantages of the Estate tax law for married couples. The Estate Law allows spouses to transfer wealth between each other with no tax implications, which can be a huge tax saving.









