On June 26, 2013, the United States Supreme Court struck down Section 3 of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, taking the first step toward dismantling the 1996 law that for 16 years has mandated unequal federal treatment of legally married same-sex couples, selectively depriving them of more than 1,100 protections and responsibilities that marriage triggers at the federal level.
DOMA, enacted in 1996, forces the federal government to deny important protections to married same-sex couples, including Social Security survivor benefits, immigration rights, family and medical leave, and the ability to pool resources as a family without unfair taxation.
Striking down Section 3 of DOMA, achieved through a victory in the Supreme Court case Windsor v. United States, was the first step in returning the federal government to its longstanding practice of honoring marriage without a "gay exception."
To fully overturn DOMA and end federal marriage discrimination, we must pass the Respect for Marriage Act, which was introduced on June 26, 2013, just hours after the victory in the Windsor case. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) introduced S. 1236 in the Senate with 42 cosponsors, and Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) introduced H.R. 2523 with 170 cosponsors. It is only with the passage of the Respect for Marriage Act that DOMA's discriminatory language will be permanently removed from the U.S. statutes and we will ensure certainty regardless of where a legally married same-sex couple lives.
Cosponsors of the Respect for Marriage Act
See the current list of Cosponsors of the Respect for Marriage Act by clicking the links below. Are your Congressmembers missing? Contact them today and ask for thier support the Respect for Marriage Act!
House Cosponsors of the Respect for Marriage Act, H.R. 2523
Senate Cosponsors of the Respect for Marriage Act, S. 1236
Frequently Asked Questions
Which parts of DOMA did the June 2013 Supreme Court ruling overturn?
The Windsor case challenged the constitutionality of Section 3 of DOMA, which discriminatorily excluded married same-sex couples from federal protections, responsibilities, and programs.
Section 2 of DOMA, however, which says that states may discriminate against same-sex couples legally married in other states, still stands. Through the Respect for Marriage Act, we must overturn Section 2, although removing Section 2 will not eliminate discriminatory state marriage laws.
Passing the Respect for Marriage Act will ensure that all married couples – including same-sex couples – enjoy equal protections under federal law and permanently remove DOMA’s discriminatory language from U.S. statutes.
Has President Obama endorsed the Respect for Marriage Act?
On July 19, 2011, President Barack Obama endorsed the Respect for Marriage Act, several months after the Administration announced that it would stop defending DOMA in court because it is unconstitutional.
In May 2012, President Obama completed his journey and joined the majority of Americans in fully embracing the freedom to marry for same-sex couples. President Obama’s announcement came after the launch of Freedom to Marry’s Say ‘I Do’ campaign, an open letter signed by civil rights leaders, tech entrepreneurs, professional athletes, Hollywood celebrities, and more than 120,000 Americans urging the president to support marriage for same-sex couples.
How has support for the Respect for Marriage Act increased since its initial introduction?
Over the past two years, the Respect for Marriage Coalition has held more than 100 meetings with Congressmembers and their staffs on why DOMA hurts same-sex couples and their families and why we must pass the Respect for Marriage Act.
As a result of this work, support for the legislation has grown on Capitol Hill from 18 U.S. Senators and 108 U.S. Representatives at the time of the bills’ introduction in 2011 to 42 U.S. Senators and 170 U.S. Representatives today.