• 12
  • January
    2012

A bill pending in the Washington state legislature could have far-reaching effects for couples in Clark County and throughout the state. Gov. Christine Gregoire said last week that she would get behind a bill legalizing same-sex marriage--a bill sponsored every session by a state lawmaker from Vancouver, Washington.

If the bill were to become law--and the sponsor says he has support from both sides of the aisle--gay and lesbian couples would gain full marriage equality rights. From a family law perspective, potentially thousands of men and women could find themselves eligible to get married, with all the highs and lows, positives and negatives, and rewards and consequences that opposite-sex couples have experienced in their marriages.

As one couple in a domestic partnership noted, married couples receive several benefits as a result of their status that those in a domestic partnership don't get. This includes taxation, as there is no tax break associated with being in a registered domestic partnership, and tax returns must be filed separately.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Jim Moeller, D-Vancouver, says he has seen the governor's position evolve throughout her time in office. Gregoire is coming toward the end of her second term, and will not be on the ballot for re-election this fall. Moeller says he thinks that over that time, the governor has come to the conclusion that there is a difference between allowing same-sex couples to enter into a domestic partnership arrangement and not a marriage.

Couples in Vancouver, Washington, or anywhere else in the state who are planning to transfer from a domestic partnership agreement to a marriage may wish to speak with a family law attorney to make sure all their questions regarding marriage and its legal ramifications are answered.

Source: The Columbian, "Clark County gays, lesbians optimistic about marriage equality bill," Paris Achen, Jan. 4, 2011