The Supreme Court’s recent decision to strike down a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) means the Social Security Administration will have to make some policy decisions about the way it awards spousal benefits and survivor benefits. The Supreme Court recently declared that Section 3 of DOMA, which refused to grant federal recognition to same-sex marriage, was unconstitutional. The Social Security Administration relies upon state law where the individual lives to determine an individual’s marital status. As a result of the recent Supreme Court decision, married same sex couples residing in states that recognize same-sex marriage should be entitled to spousal benefits and survivor’s benefits.Callers to Social Security 800 number were informed that their information would be taken but no decisions would be made.. As more information is provided by Social Security we will post the changes on our blog.
