The Texas Supreme Court has denied a Galveston woman's request to overturn the adoption of her 6-year-old daughter by her former lesbian partner, according to the Houston Chronicle. Julie Ann Hobbs and Janet Kathleen Van Stavern were together for eight years, ending in February 2004. Hobbs conceived the girl through artificial insemination and Van Stavern legally adopted her in 2001. The Texas Supreme Court declined to hear Hobbs' request to dismiss a lawsuit filed in May by Van Stavern for joint custody and standard visitation of the girl.
The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance is using the federal Defense of Marriage Act ( DOMA ) to stop legally wed same-sex couples in New York from filing as married, according to the Gay City News. Tom Bergin, spokesman for the tax department, said that the department recognizes DOMA because the IRS does and it follows federal guidelines. The office of state Attorney Gen. Eliot Spitzer, which issued an opinion last year that New York should honor the marriages of such couples wed in Canada and elsewhere, has refused to get involved.
A coalition of social conservative leaders warned the White House that they would withhold support for President Bush's proposal to partially privatize Social Security unless he enthusiastically supports a constitutional amendment to prohibit same-sex marriage, the Washington Blade reported.
The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S. ( SIECUS ) , along with over 210 groups, from across the county sent a letter to Congressional leaders regarding the chambers' oversight into taxpayer-funded abstinence programs. According to a SIECUS release, the letter is in support of a statement made by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., during a Dec. 5 television appearance in which he stated that the government should ensure that all federally funded abstinence programs are fully reviewed.
In a letter to the acting Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Human Rights Campaign requested an investigation to determine whether columnist Maggie Gallagher, having received more than $40,000 in federal grants to promote President Bush's marriage initiatives, violated federal law by not disclosing the funding to the public or Congress. Gallagher testified in the Senate in support of the discriminatory constitutional amendment and wrote numerous syndicated columns on these issues.
University of Massachusetts researchers said that same-sex weddings and gay tourists traveling to the state to get married could pump an estimated $150 million into the state economy, while legalized same-sex marriage could save about $14 million a year in state spending, the Boston Herald reported. From receptions to rings, spending on gay nuptials could translate into a state economic boost of between $85 million and $102 million over a period beginning last May—when same-sex couples began getting married—to the end of this year.
Starting this year, some registered domestic partners in California and their children may have a harder time getting financial aid from the state and from state colleges and universities, although some may find it easier. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, it is all a result of the California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act that took effect Jan. 1. The law gives domestic partners who have registered with the secretary of state's office the same legal and financial rights, benefits, and obligations as married couples—but only for state, not federal, purposes.
The Human Rights Campaign denounced the reintroduction of an amendment that would deny marriage to same-sex couples, emphasizing how out of touch Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo.; his co-sponsors; President Bush; and the extreme right wing are with the American public on the issue of writing discrimination into the Constitution.
Alameda County ( Calif. ) supervisors approved a resolution barring discrimination on the basis of 'gender identity,' according to the Costa Times.The resolution bans such discrimination in county jobs, services, and facilities. It defines gender identity as 'identity, appearance and behavior whether or not stereotypically associated with the person's assigned sex at birth.' The 4-0 vote came after several critics warned the board against the measure.
The 501 Tavern, a prominent Indianapolis gay bar that had been in operation for almost 20 years, was damaged in a fire on Jan. 30, according to the Indianapolis Star. The bar's co-owner said he hoped to be able to get the business repaired and reopened as quickly as possible. Arson investigators were looking for the cause of the fire.
