Legislation
introduced in the U.S House of Representatives last week
would amend the Social Security Act to afford same-sex
couples the same benefits, responsibilities, and
obligations as others who pay into Social Security.
The Equal Access to Social Security Act, H.R. 5152, would
add the term "permanent partner" to the Social
Security Act in addition to the terms "husband" and
"wife," which are already present in the legal
code.
"Same-sex couples
are denied more than 1,000 federal benefits that other
taxpayers are entitled to," said Democratic congressman
Jerrold Nadler of New York, who authored the bill.
"The Equal Access to Social Security Act addresses
this inequity. Ultimately, the only way same-sex
couples will be treated equally is when they are allowed to
marry--but until that can be a reality for the
millions of same-sex couples in this country, we
should act to make federal law fair to all."
Nadler's bill
does not address same-sex marriage but does provide gay and
lesbian couples with some of the benefits married
couples enjoy under the Social Security system. Under
H.R. 5152, children of same-sex couples would be able
to collect survivor benefits in the event of a
parent's death, just as children of federally recognized
married couples may do.
"I've heard many
conservatives say that other than the case of
marriage, they don't want to discriminate against the LGBT
community," Nadler said. "If they truly don't want to
discriminate, here is their chance to prove it. Same-sex
couples pay the same taxes as married couples, and
they deserve the same Social Security benefits as
everyone else."
Recognizing that
the elderly often face difficulty maintaining their
standard of living after a partner dies, the bill would also
entitle elderly same-sex couples to the survivor
benefits offered by Social Security to heterosexual
widows and widowers.
Seventeen members
of Congress have cosponsored Nadler's resolution:
representatives Tammy Baldwin, Howard Berman, John Conyers,
Joseph Crowley, Rahm Emanuel, Sam Farr, Barney Frank,
Rau;l Grijalva, Patrick Kennedy, Barbara Lee,
Carolyn Maloney, Jim McDermott, George Miller, Charles
Rangel, Pete Stark, Henry Waxman, and Lynn Woolsey. (The
Advocate)
