Boston.com – By Steve LeBlanc, Associated Press
The federal government has refused to pay death benefits to the spouse of the late Gerry Studds, the first openly gay member of Congress.
Studds married Dean Hara in 2004 after gay marriage was legalized in Massachusetts. But Hara will not be eligible for any of Studds’ estimated $114,337 annual pension because the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act bars the federal government from recognizing the couple’s marriage.
Peter Graves, a spokesman for the Office of Personnel Management, which administers the congressional pension program, said same-sex partners are not recognized as spouses for any marriage benefits. He said Studds’ case was the first of its kind known to the agency.
Under federal law, pensions can be denied only to lawmakers’ same-sex partners and people convicted of espionage or treason, Graves said.