Alaskan Same-sex Couples Sue State Over Discriminatory Tax Laws

The American Civil Liberties Union has announced that it is representing three sexagenarian Alaskan same-sex couples who have filed a lawsuit against the state of Alaska for its discriminatory tax-assessment rules.

Under current Alaskan law, same-sex couples cannot receive the same amount of tax exemptions for disabled veterans and senior citizens that opposite-sex couples can receive. Eligible opposite-sex couples can receive up to $150,000 in tax exemptions, while eligible same-sex couples can only receive up to half of that because the state considers them roommates instead of married couples.

Although the recognition of same-sex marriages was prohibited by an amendment to the state's constitution in 1998, the ACLU has been working to insure that same-sex couples receive equal treatment under the law.

In 2005, the ACLU argued on the winning side of an Alaska Supreme Court case that ruled it was unconstitutional for the state to deny equal benefits to gay and lesbian state employees and their domestic partners. According to the ACLU, the current tax-assessment rules are just as discriminatory and just as unconstitutional.

"Alaska law is clear that denying committed same-sex couples the same rights as married opposite-sex couples is unconstitutional," says Tom Stenson of the ACLU of Alaska. "For senior couples and disabled vets, every bit of savings counts. These couples should not have to pay more taxes than other families."

"I was proud to serve our country and defend our democratic values, " says Julie Vollick, one of the plaintiffs of the case and a veteran of the United States Air Force with service-related disabilities. "All we want is the fairness I've fought to defend."

In addition to the lawsuit in Alaska, the ACLU is also representing same-sex couples in Montana who have been denied the same legal protections as opposite-sex couples.

The lawsuits come during a year when advocates for same-sex couples have already won an number of legal battles.

In March, the Supreme Court refused to block a law in Washington, DC that would allow same-sex couples to apply for marriage licenses.

Another victory came in July, when a U.S. district judge in Boston, Massachusetts declared that a nation-wide ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional because it prohibits individual states from defining what marriage is and is not.