Same-sex couples allowed to use spouses' surnames on passports
The Obama administration has agreed to let same-sex couples use their spouse’s surname when they apply for passports from the US State Department, an activist group said yesterday in Boston.
A gay married couple, Al and Keith Toney, joined the group Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders in challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which was passed during the Clinton administration, in federal court in Boston.
One issue the couple and GLAD raised was the State Department’s refusal to allow Keith Toney - his name before marriage was Keith Fitzpatrick - to seek a new passport under his spouse’s surname.
In a letter dated June 15, the US Justice Department notified GLAD and the Toneys that the prohibition has been stricken from federal rules. Keith Toney was invited to apply for a new passport and was also told the normal fees will be waived. He will file the paperwork June 22, GLAD said.
Mary L. Bonauto, lead counsel for GLAD, welcomed the shift by the current administration, but urged a more sweeping rejection of the federal law.
The Toneys were among nine same-sex couples who are suing the federal government in US District Court, seeking to have their rights as married couples recognized by all federal agencies, such as the Social Security Administration. The lawsuit remains active on those other issues.
In court papers in a similar federal case filed in California last week, Justice Department lawyers said the law should survive legal challenges because its only purpose is to give states the right to decide how to deal with same-sex marriage questions.
In phrasing that irritated gay activists, the Justice Department went on to say Congress should move slowly to rewrite federal law, even as Massachusetts and other states approve same-sex marriages.
“Congress is entitled to respond to new social phenomena one step at a time and to adjust national policy incrementally,’’ the lawyers wrote, adding that the Defense of Marriage Act “reflects just such a response.’’
But Bonauto said such a view endorses discrimination nationally. She added, however, that the current administration has been more receptive to concerns of gays and lesbians than the Bush administration.
“I believe this is a fresh look by the Obama administration,’’ she said of the change in passport rules.
According to GLAD, Keith Fitzpatrick and Al Toney III were married in 2004 and jointly decided to change their name to Toney, in part, because Al had a daughter, Kayla, and the couple wanted to make certain they would share the same name.
