Ireland: Official Says Public Places Must be Open to Gay Couples for Civil Partnerships

MINISTER OF State for the Office of Public Works Martin Mansergh warned that public facilities should not be closed to gay couples seeking to obtain a civil partnership. Some proposals, he said, had been made for what would, in effect, amount to discrimination, namely, that offices of the State should be allowed to withhold, or not participate in, civil partnership ceremonies. “My view is that if one takes up a public appointment, one must carry out the duties that the law prescribes, and those duties will change from time to time as the law changes,’’ said Dr Mansergh. “We should not give sanction, effectively, to homophobia for conscientious reasons.’’ Dr Mansergh was speaking during the resumed Second Stage debate on the Civil Partnership Bill 2009. Full Story from the Irish Times

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UK: Conservative Leader Promises Equality For Gay/Lesbian Couples in Tax System

Conservative leader David Cameron promised on Monday to offer tax breaks to same-sex couples engaging in civil partnerships, one of a raft of family-friendly measures he hopes will soften his party's image. Cameron, who will become prime minister if the Conservatives win a general election due by June, was seeking to bounce back after admitting last week he had "messed up" by appearing to go back on a pledge to give married couples tax breaks. "We will recognise marriage, whether between a man and a woman, a woman and a woman or a man and a man, in the tax system -- and yes, that is a commitment," he said during a speech at think-tank Demos. Full Story from Reuters: http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE60A2QG20100111

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Canada: Financial Planning Different for Gay/Lesbian Couples

Over the past decade, major inroads have been made into broadening the rights of same-sex couples in Canada, but when it comes down to financial planning some advisers say important differences remain. Often it comes down to how same-sex couples manage their long-term financial goals and whether they have really addressed what would happen if one partner was to die without the proper estate documents in place. Those potential pitfalls can usually be avoided if they're anticipated and a financial plan is etched out, but sometimes that's the hardest part, said Julia Chung, a branch manager at the Bank of Montreal in downtown Toronto. Some lesbian, gay, transgendered or bisexual individuals - and even long-term couples - don't like to discuss their personal lives with outsiders, or they omit crucial details that could impact their financial futures. Examples range from children borne from a previous relationship to the hopes of having children in their current one. Full Story from the Winnipeg Free Press: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/finance/79550127.html

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Artist Creating Portraits of Long-Term Gay/Lesbian Couples as Protest

I was dismayed earlier this month when the New York State Senate voted down the gay marriage bill, and I decided to interview and paint long-standing gay couples, both men and women, and ask them about their stories and their relationships and what marriage means to them. This is the first of the series. On a recent rainy afternoon in Brooklyn, I sat down to talk with writer and communications specialist Nancy Goldstein and syndicated cartoonist Joan Hilty, whose marriage in Provincetown in May of 2004 has been recognized in New York State since July of 2006. With their dog Juno trying to get in on the conversation, Nancy and Joan talked about love and marriage. Joan: We met online in the early, early days of internet dating, in mid-1999. It was on a lesbian/gay dating website called Edwina.com. Its icon was a little guy dressed up as your "Aunt Edwina who only wants the best for you". You could browse other people’s personals, and only get an idea of them through the quality of their writing because there were barely any pictures up yet or videos or songs or anything. Full Story from Drawger: http://www.drawger.com/zinasaunders/index.php?article_id=9369

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NH: Gay/Lesbian Couples Can Marry As of January 1st

A new era begins in New Hampshire on Jan. 1 when gays and lesbians can begin to legally marry. Although Gov. John Lynch said he personally opposes marriage for same-sex couples, he signed legislation into law on June 3 that will allow gays and lesbians to tie the knot. Marriage will replace civil unions, which have been legal in the state since Jan. 1, 2008. Couples who have civil unions can choose to convert them to marriages by filling out paperwork with their local governments. If they do nothing, their civil unions will still convert to marriages on Jan. 1, 2011, and couples can then obtain marriage licenses. City and town clerks began to distribute applications in October. Full Story from Edge Boston: http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=&sc2=news&sc3=&id=100029

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WA: Everything But Marrige Law Takes Effect Thursday

On Thursday, it will be 30 days since Election Day. Big deal, you say? It is a big deal. As John Marsh, Bob Teichman, Dee Peterson and others planning to celebrate outside the Snohomish County Courthouse know, the state's new domestic partnership law takes effect Thursday. Voters approved it last month by deciding the fate of Referendum 71, which was placed on the ballot by those opposed to expanded rights for state-registered domestic partners. Seen as a direct vote on gay rights, R-71 bucked a national trend. Maine voters on Nov. 3 repealed a same-sex marriage law. In 2008, voters in California, Arizona and Florida eliminated the right of gay couples to marry or approved marriage-protection measures. Full Story from Herald.net: http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20091202/NEWS01/712029857

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Portugal: Likely to Pass Gay Marriage Early in 2010 - Video

The gay community in Portugal is confident that, after much pressure, same-sex marriages will be allowed within a matter of months. While neighbouring Spain permitted gay marriage almost five years ago, so far much of Portuguese society has staunchly opposed the concept. However, it is thought the Socialist government may pass gay marriage or civil partnership into law as soon as early in the New Year. Full Story from BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8385935.stm

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New Study: Same Sex Couples Face Significant Disadvantages in Retirement

As same-sex couples are increasingly being granted rights similar to those of traditional marriages, many will be at a comparative disadvantage as they enter retirement. The study by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law says gays and lesbians will have less retirement income and fewer ways to pass savings on to their families after their death. Merrill Lynch, a unit of Bank of America(BAC Quote), helped fund the report. A large share of same-sex couples will be entering retirement in the next two decades, just as states open marriage and civil-union laws. There are about 1.2 million gay people living with a same-sex partner in America, according to the most recent U.S. Census. Full Story from The Street: http://www.thestreet.com/story/10618376/1/same-sex-couples-not-so-golden-years.html?cm_ven=GOOGLEFI

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New Study Shows Gay/Lesbian Couples face Significant Disadvantages in Retirement

A new study released today details the inequalities faced by same-sex couples in employer-sponsored retirement plans. Without legal recognition of their relationships under federal law, the report concludes, lesbians and gay men have less retirement income and are disadvantaged in their ability to pass on savings to their families after their death. The study, "The Impact of Inequality for Same-Sex Partners in Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans," provides the first detailed demographic portrait of older same-sex couples. It was released by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law with funding support from Merrill Lynch in conjunction with National Save for Retirement Week. "The findings show that, in particular, female same-sex couples have far less retirement income than different-sex married couples," says study author Naomi Goldberg. Full Story from Reuters: http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS184944+23-Oct-2009+PRN20091023

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Census Bureau Puts Off Counting Gay Marriages Until 2020, Citing "Statistical Problems"

The U.S. Census Bureau is making an unprecedented effort to include same-sex couples in next year's national population count, but legally married gay couples won't show up as such in the official once-a-decade tally, bureau representatives said Thursday. Statistical problems related to the development of the 2010 census form and the evolving legal state of same-sex relationships led Census officials to conclude that trying to include married gay couples in the overall snapshot of household marital status could yield an inaccurate number, said Gary Gates, a University of California, Los Angeles demographer who has been advising the bureau on gay issues. Instead, same-sex married couples will be added into the category for unmarried partners, just as they were for the 2000 census. But in a marked policy departure, the agency plans to make the data on same-sex couples who described themselves as married available on a state-by-state basis. Full Story from The AP: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jG5nvKt-JnOIr1KTFOmV-xXDM2FwD9BGGEA80

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150K Same Sex Couples in Marriage Relationships in 2008, Census Says

Nearly 150,000 same-sex couples reported being in marriage relationships last year, many more than the number of actual weddings and civil unions, according to the first U.S. census figures released on same-sex marriages. About 27 percent of the estimated 564,743 total gay couples in the United States said they were in a relationship akin to "husband" and "wife," according to the Census Bureau tally provided to The Associated Press. That's compared with 91 percent of the 61.3 million total opposite-sex couples who reported being married. A consultant to the Census Bureau estimated there were roughly 100,000 official same-sex weddings, civil unions and domestic partnerships in 2008. Full Story from AP: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gCdZqWgPVPTXeB1bQGw_j7YOIvHAD9AS4OA82

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