Michigan gay marriage law
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Married same-sex couples can file joint state tax returns, potentially resulting in tax benefits and simplifying their financial affairs. Hodges decision, Michigan’s legislature was tasked with revising its statutory framework to comply with the Supreme Court’s mandate.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services promptly updated its policies to allow same-sex couples to obtain marriage licenses and access the same legal benefits as heterosexual couples.
Impact of Obergefell v. April DeBoer, a Michigan woman, sued then-Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder because she and her partner, Jayne Rowse, were unable to marry in Michigan.
"I no longer trust the U.S. Supreme Court is going to protect my rights," he said. This required tangible changes in the administration of marriage licenses and the recognition of marital rights. Jackson Women's Health Organization in 2022.
And as Kaplan points out, "There is no case in the federal court right now where someone is challenging the marriage equality decision."
But how likely is the Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell?
That depends on whom you ask.
... "However, as a legislator, I’m not the one who would be responsible for raising millions of dollars for it. Wade when it ruled on Dobbs v. The question for a lot of Democratic and progressive groups is whether that is an effort they want to launch during a busy mid-term with a slew of big offices at stake.
Digging deeper: The legal matter of same-sex marriage spent years and years in courts leading all the way up to the Supreme Court ten years ago.
My hope would be there would be some organizational financial support to put this on the ballot in 2026, but I don’t know yet whether that would be there and I would rather not put it on the ballot in 2026 than put something forward without enough support."
Meanwhile, MME is a fledgling group. “If the national coverage is focused on the court, and the interactions between justices and attorneys, I can do the human-focused storytelling.
Hodges
The Obergefell v. The state was compelled to dismantle its statutory and constitutional barriers to same-sex marriage, aligning its practices with the Supreme Court’s directive. Since the beginning of the second Trump administration, Nessel has filed or joined six lawsuits against the federal government. In Michigan, 68% strongly favor or favor same-sex marriage.
Meanwhile, Nessel said, "I see challenges likely to come up through the various district courts with the understanding that they likely have a majority on the United States Supreme Court right now."
She added: "We see this with great frequency.
And recently, at its annual meeting, the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant denomination in the nation, voted to work to overturn gay marriage.
So how dire is the threat to same-sex marriage? … Wanting this on the ballot and having it be feasible at this exact time are two different questions. U.S.
District Judge Bernard Friedman ruled in their favor, declaring the ban unconstitutional. When asked about whether the AG is eyeing the open U.S. Senate seat in Michigan next year: “It's really hard for me to focus on anything in 2026 when I see the state of the country in such disarray now in 2025.”
Failed vote: It’s rare to see a Speaker of the House put up legislation that they know will fail but that’s exactly what Matt Hall did this week in Lansing when the state House voted down legislation that would allow undocumented immigrants to apply for Michigan driver’s licenses.
The first way, which Morgan is pursuing: Two-thirds of each chamber of the state Legislature would need to vote to put it on the ballot, which is unlikely, considering the makeup of the chambers (20 Democrats and 18 Republicans comprise the Senate; 58 Republicans and 52 Democrats comprise the House) and also because the resolution has been referred to the government operations committee which, again, is where bills often go to die.
That is the case with similar resolutions passed by the state House of Representatives in Idaho and North Dakota.
But the bigger concern stems from the reversal of abortion rights.