Virginia may be for lovers, but for same-sex married couples who already had to go elsewhere to tie the knot, tax time could present new burdens.
The reason is a recent decision by Virginia’s tax collectors to treat gay couples differently than the IRS does.
The Virginia Department of Taxation, after consulting with Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II’s office, has ruled that the state will not conform to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service’s new tax treatment of same-sex married couples because state law and a state constitutional amendment prohibit recognition of gay marriage.
As a result, gay couples must now file their federal tax returns as married couples — either jointly or separately — but will have to file Virginia tax returns as single individuals.
The ACLU of Virginia saw the decision as reaffirmation of the state’s “ongoing hostility toward lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Virginians, including legally married same-sex couples.”
Claire Guthrie Gastañaga, ACLU executive director, said in an interview that civil rights groups hope to persuade Gov.-elect Terry McAuliffe to follow the lead of Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon (D), who signed an executive order allowing same-sex couples who were legally married in other states to file joint tax returns with the state. Like Virginia, Missouri has a constitutional ban on recognizing same-sex marriages.
The McAuliffe transition team is aware of the problem and is studying the situation. What seems like a no-brainer might be a little trickier than it appears because of the language of the Virginia “defense of marriage” amendment. This case seems ripe for the Supreme Court. Gay couples simply will not have the same privileges others have and they will never be able to have them as long as that Virginia “defense of marriage” act remains in effect. I would like to see the courts overturn the amendment as unconstitutional.
Strict segregation laws were on the books also. See where they are now. When married heterosexual Virginians are given a tax break, then the same option should be given to married homosexual Virginians.
If someone’s religion forbids homosexuality, then that person be a homosexual. That’s pretty simple and it has nothing to do with anyone else but that individual. Leave everyone else alone. Virginia’s laws should apply the same benefits to everyone. right now, they don’t.
I guess this makes the race between Herring and Obenshane all the more critical.
I simply don’t see how anyone can justify one set of Virginians getting a tax break and another being told NO.
Read this and found it hard to believe, but with Cuccinelli as AG
I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. At least he won’t be Governor!
As much as I don’t like the “defense of marriage” amendment, I think that is what props up the notion that absolutely nothing can be recognized state-wide having to do with same sex marriage. It also includes heterosexual relationships that aren’t marriage.
I guess my objection is that while the heterosexuals can marry, the gays cannot, by law, in Virginia. Therefore, their civil rights have been violated. That’s just my opinion.
I am also not so sure I believe that the state should be in the position of creating “marriage.” I would like to see state control civil unions and marriages be reserved for various churches. If we are going to go all exclusionary on marriage, then let’s just keep it as a church function.
My marriage would convert to civil union and I could keep it as marriage also since it was sanctioned by a church.
@Moon-howler
OR we could just tax everyone as individuals……
Nice flat tax of ….say….18% …. of every dollar above an arbitrary level…..3x poverty.
You might want to take a look at Virginia income tax code before suggesting such a high rate.
The Virginia marriage amendment is on borrowed time at this point. It will not survive constitutional challenge in the federal courts. It was palpably defective at the time it was enacted, but it was on the ballot to drive votes from certain opinion segments. It served that purpose admirably, I imagine. I was startled to find pamphlets being distributed in my church urging parishioners to vote for it.
I believe that it was the brain child of Karl Rove. I forget why the R’s wanted to GOTV.
I voted against it.
I was horribly offended to see it on the ballot.
I disagree with the law but I thought that filing individually would be better financially, at least at the federal level due to the so-called “marriage penalty”
Tell us more about the marriage penalty. We have out taxes calculated both ways and there has never been a time that we didn’t do better tax wise filing jointly.
@Moon-howler
I was talking about the FEDs….that way everyone is equal…… Keep Virginia rates where they are.
Back when I did tax work, I learned that two persons co-habitating would save tax money by filing each as single individuals. But If they married, their standard deduction decreased, leading to a higher tax burden. If that is still the case, our stupid AG may well be giving same sex couples a tax break, hahaha!