ACLU Launches Petition as Florida Decides if It Too Will Deny Gay Troop Benefits

Florida's attorney general won't say if the Florida National Guard will comply with an order form the Pentagon to begin offering partner benefits to troops with same-sex spouses, the Miami Herald reports: 

Maj. Gen. Emmett R. Titshaw Jr., Florida’s adjutant general, wrote Attorney General Pam Bondi seeking the opinion on Sept. 6, essentially asking whether processing gay Guard members’ spouses for benefits would conflict with the state’s constitution, which defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

Friday, Gerry Hammond, senior assistant attorney general, wrote Titshaw that his request for an opinion “provided insufficient information about the connection between the newly announced policy of the United States Secretary of Defense and your official duties as the head of the Florida Department of Military Affairs.”

...Hammond said Titshaw needs to conduct his own analysis first and then spell out for the attorney general’s office “the actions the new federal policy requires of” the Florida National Guard as well as “how any obligations imposed on you by the federal government might conflict with your duties under state law.”

So far, Texas, Misssissippi and Louisiana are refusing to comply with the order and process the spousal benefits, based on state laws banning same-sex marriage. 

The states' refusal has prompted the ACLU to launch a petition to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. It reads:

Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana are set to defy your directive to provide federal benefits for the families of same-sex couples in the National Guard. When our service members serve our country at home or abroad, they need to know that their families will get the benefits they need, no matter what. We urge you to use the Department of Defense's authority to put these states in line and enforce equal access to benefits for all military families nationwide.

Social Security begins processing retirement claims for same-sex spouses

The Social Security Administration (SSA) said Friday it has begun processing, and paying, some retirement spouse claims for married, same-sex couples.

But the SSA also noted that it is limiting payment of claims only to those married in a state that permits same-sex marriage, and who are living in a state that recognizes same sex-marriage.

Couples who were married in one of the 13 states (or District of Columbia) where same-sex marriage is legal, but reside in another state, will have their claims held until the agency makes a final decision in their case, or obtains more guidance from the Justice Department.

The agency’s action comes after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in June that struck down a key provision of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that that blocked federal recognition of same-sex marriages, leading to couples being denied federal benefits.

Carolyn W. Colvin, Acting Commissioner of Social Security, said in a statement that in the coming weeks and months, the SSA “will develop and implement additional policy and processing instructions” as it works with the Justice Department to implement changes resulting from the ruling.

“I encourage individuals who believe they may be eligible for Social Security benefits to apply now, to protect against the loss of any potential benefits. We will process claims as soon as additional instructions become finalized,” Colvin said.

Twins Raised by Two Moms are Key West High School's First Valedictorian and Salutatorian Sisters

Erin and Elizabeth Czerwinski were named Valedictorian and Salutatorian of Key West High School in Florida this month, Freedom to Marry reports. They had grade point averages of 4.713 and 4.746.
They are the school's first sisters to take the double top honor, and they were raised by a lesbian couple.
Now, who was saying gay people can't raise children?

Pentagon to Begin Issuing Same-Sex Domestic Partner Benefits on September 1

The Pentagon will begin issuing same-sex domestic partner benefits on September 1, the Washington Times reports:

The dependents’ ID cards will entitle partners to scores of benefits, as outlined by then-Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta in a February policy decision.

The ID card Web notice refers to same-sex domestic partners as “SSDPs.”

The benefits include education, survivor, commissary, travel, counseling and transportation, but not what some consider the armed forces’ premium perks — health care and housing allowances.

Mr. Panetta said the federal Defense of Marriage Act restricts those benefits to heterosexual couples, though the Pentagon has not ruled out offering them to homosexual couples at some point.

Still, the new benefits and special ID cards represent a victory for the gay rights movement in the wake of President Obama’s lifting the long-time ban on open homosexuals in the ranks.

An Army National Guard posting appeared to confirm the Washington Times report.

Study: Children of Same-Sex Couples Healthier Than Peers

An in-progress study from Melbourne University in Australia, finds that children with same-gender parents are doing as well or better than the rest of the population on a number of key health indicators.

The information, published in The Age, describes the Australian Study of Child Health in Same-Sex Families as the largest of its kind: 315 gay, lesbian and bisexual parents from around the nation completed the globally-recognized Child Health Questionnaire, which included data on 500 children, up to the age of 17.

An interim report found there was no statistical difference between children of same-sex couples and the rest of the population on indicators including self-esteem, emotional behavior and the amount of time spent with parents.
However, children of same-sex couples scored higher than the national average for overall health and family cohesion, measuring how well the family members get along.

This information seemingly debunks a study conducted by Mark Regenerus from the University of Texas at Austin, which is widely cited by groups who are against LGBT people from becoming parents. As writer Jase Peeples from Advocate.com reports, Regenerus’ study used only 20 cases of same-sex parenting to draw its conclusions, and only two of those examples were instances of both same-sex parents having been in a child’s life for all 18 years of their upbringing.

That hasn’t stopped Regenerus from claiming it’s actually the Australian study that’s wrong. In a guest op-ed in the conservative National Review, he attacks the study today for using emails and other forms of advertising to find the couples who participated in the survey. Regenerus says the 500 couples may participate because they have an agenda to push and that their self-reporting about their own children is biased.

Thus far, organizers of the Australian study have not commented on Regenerus or his research. Instead, they offer some theories as to why they’re seeing these initial positive results. ”Because of the situation that same-sex families find themselves in, they are generally more willing to communicate and approach the issues that any child may face at school, like teasing or bullying,” says lead researcher Dr Simon Crouch in the report. ”This fosters openness and means children tend to be more resilient. That would be our hypothesis.”