Tax Justice and Same-Sex Domestic Partner Health Benefits: An Analysis of the Tax Equity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act

Michelle D. Layser

Abstract

This article analyzes the recently proposed Tax Equity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act of 2009. Under current law the marriages and domestic partnerships of same-sex couples are not recognized for federal tax purposes under the Defense of Marriage Act. As a result, same-sex couples who receive employer-provided health benefits for their partners pay over $1,000 more in federal income tax than similarly situated opposite-sex couples. This unequal tax treatment also results in an additional burden of $57 million per year in extra payroll taxes for employers. The proposed Act would eliminate this discrimination.