Gay Marriage Opponents Hail Texas High Court's Decision Restricting Government Benefits to Same-Sex Couples
Gay marriage opponents hailed the ruling made by the Texas Supreme Court that same-sex couples are not necessarily entitled to government employment benefits.
Calling Friday's decision "a huge win," plaintiffs' attorney Jared Woodfill said the state's highest court has put a limit on the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision two years ago legalizing same-sex marriage, the Houston Chronicle reported.
"The court has limited Obergefell in terms of how broadly it should be interpreted," Woodfill said. "It recognized that there's an argument to be made at the trial court that taxpayer dollars should not be used in violation of one's deeply held religious beliefs."
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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who supported the plaintiffs in the case, shared Woodfill's view.
"I'm extremely pleased that the Texas Supreme Court recognized that Texas law is still important when it comes to marriage," he said in a statement. "While the U.S. Supreme Court declared a right to same-sex marriage, that ruling did not resolve all legal issues related to marriage."
The Texas high court's decision sent the case challenging the city of Houston's provision of benefits back to trial court.
However, the high court's unanimous ruling does not prevent Houston from offering employment benefits to same-sex couples. The ruling only clarifies that the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision recognizing gay marriage did not resolve whether employees' same-sex spouses have a right to benefits.
"The Supreme Court held in Obergefell that the Constitution requires states to license and recognize same-sex marriages to the same extent that they license and recognize opposite-sex marriages, but it did not hold that states must provide the same publicly funded benefits to all married persons," Justice Jeffrey S. Boyd wrote. "Of course, that does not mean ... that the city may constitutionally deny benefits to its employees' same-sex spouses. Those are the issues that this case now presents."
Regardless of the high court's opinion on the matter, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said the city will continue to provide spousal benefits to same-sex couples.
"Marriage equality is the law of the land, and everyone is entitled to the full benefits of marriage, regardless of the gender of their spouse," Turner said.
As expected, the LGBTQ community denounced the court's decision.
"The Texas Supreme Court's decision this morning is a warning shot to all LGBTQ Americans that the war on marriage equality is ever-evolving, and anti-LGBTQ activists will do anything possible to discriminate against our families," said Sarah Kate Ellis, president of the New York-based group GLAAD.
