General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: I'll say it again: DOMA HAS NOT BEEN STRUCK DOWN [View all]spooky3
(34,303 posts)if people are legally married but move to NC, for example, they are entitled to federal benefits given to spouses, such as Social Security based on spouses' earnings, federal income tax filing status/rates, federal estate tax exemptions, etc. If so, then the feds. DO recognize the marriage for the purposes of applying federal laws. The problem is that state laws may continue to discriminate against them, e.g., state income tax laws, because those (and some other provisions of DOMA) were not directly challenged in the recent lawsuit.
The basis for this interpretation is that as I understand it, the USSC ruled that the challenged provision was inconsistent with the Equal Protection amendment to the Constitution.
This also implies (according to various writers) that if people in states like NC choose to challenge their states' behavior or other aspects of DOMA, they now have a greater likelihood of success, because there is now a precedent on the part of the USSC of viewing the Equal Protection amendment as providing some protection against unfair discrimination.