The Respect for Marriage Act - a great bipartisan milestone! The bill, which passed just this week in the US Senate, now returns to the House for another vote before it proceeds to the President to be signed into law. The Act will provide protections to LGBTQ+ couples at the federal level, specifically to ensure that our marriages cannot be annulled should the US Supreme Court at some point in the future overturn the Obergefell v. Hodges decision of 2015 which provided national marriage equality.

Again, The Respect for Marriage Act is a great achievement! However, it is not a guarantee of ongoing marriage equality throughout the country. Individual states are poised to disallow LGBTQ+ couples to marry, should the Supreme Court overturn Obergefell v. Hodges. This would likely mean that in the future couples who reside in certain states might have to cross borders to legally marry... and it opens the door for individual states to find ways to limit state protections after the couple is married, even though federal protections will remain intact.

The Respect for Marriage Act also does not provide any further protections to guard against discrimination from particular wedding vendors.

So... there is still work to do on behalf of full equality for our community!! Celebrate this victory... and continue to keep yourself informed as future legislation is considered. And most of all, continue to stay active in the community and VOTE in all elections to do your part to forward EQUALITY for us all.

As always, if you have questions about the specifics of the law and how it applies to you and your committed relationship with your partner and/or your family, RainbowWeddingNetwork encourages you to seek out legal counsel from someone who is experienced with LGBTQ+ issues.