Posts Tagged ‘equal rights’

Aug 10, 2010

California Seeks IRS Tax Equity for Same-Sex Spouses

The California Legislature has passed a resolution asking that same-sex spouses and domestic partners be taxed the same as heterosexual married couples.

The resolution, AJR29, asks the Internal Revenue Service to issue a ruling requiring individuals in a same-sex marriage or domestic partnership to each report half of their community income on federal tax returns.

Currently, California law requires same-sex couples and domestic partners to do so, but the IRS does not.

Aug 4, 2010

Prop 8 Overturned – What are Your Rights?

On August 4, 2010, the Northern District Court of California ruled that Proposition 8, the 2008 state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, violates the United States Constitution.

In May 2008, the California Supreme Court ruled that an earlier state ban on gay marriage, Proposition 22, violated the California Constitution. In response, conservative religious groups introduced Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment that defined marriage as only between a man and a woman, to the November 2008 ballot. In a highly contested and emotional campaign, California voters narrowly passed Prop. 8, 52% to 47%.

Shortly after Prop. 8 passed, same-sex marriage opponents filed documents in state court arguing that Prop. 8 violated other portions of the California Constitution. On May 25, 2009, the California Supreme Court upheld the legality of Prop. 8 under the California Constitution.