SALT LAKE CITY — The U.S. attorney general said Friday that the federal government would recognize same-sex unions in Utah, marking the latest significant show of support for same-sex marriage from the Obama administration.
The action will enable the government to extend eligibility for federal benefits to these couples. That means gay and lesbian couples can file federal taxes jointly, get Social Security benefits for spouses and request legal immigration status for partners.
Attorney General Eric Holder said the families should not be asked to endure uncertainty regarding their benefits while courts decide the issue of same-sex marriage in Utah.
The decision came days after Utah officials said they would not recognize the marriages. The office of Gov. Gary Herbert told state agencies this week to put a freeze on proceeding with any new benefits for the newly married same-sex couples until the courts sort out the matter.
In a statement Friday, Herbert’s office issued a statement that said Holder’s announcement wasn’t surprising but that state officers should comply with federal law if they’re providing federal services.
More than 1,000 gay and lesbian couples took home marriage licenses from local clerks after a federal judge overturned Utah’s same-sex marriage ban Dec. 20. Utah voters approved the ban in 2004.
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court put a halt to same-sex marriages in Utah while the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals considers the long-term question of whether same-sex couples have a right to marry in Utah.
State agencies aren’t supposed to revoke anything already issued, such as a marriage certificate or a driver’s license with a new name, but they are prohibited from approving any new marriages or benefits. State officials said the validity of the marriages will be decided by the appeals court.
Holder’s declaration marked the latest chapter in the legal battle over same-sex marriage in Utah that has sent couples and state officials on a helter-skelter wave of emotions over the past three weeks.
Federal government agencies have previously confirmed that same-sex couples in other states are entitled to federal benefits, but this is the first time Holder has come out publicly and issued this kind of guidance, said Douglas Ne- Jaime, a professor of law at the University of California, Irvine.
Holder said that “for purposes of federal law, these marriages will be recognized as lawful and considered eligible for all relevant federal benefits on the same terms as other same-sex marriages.”
