On Monday, Oklahoma became one of five additional U.S. states required to allow same-sex couples to marry after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to review lower court decisions that overturned state bans on same-sex marriage.
The other four states immediately affected by the decision were Indiana, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin. Six other states with similar bans – Colorado, Kansas, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia and Wyoming – are also affected by the decision because they are covered by the rulings of the Tenth Circuit and Fourth Circuit Courts of Appeals.
Employer requirements post-Windsor
Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in United States v. Windsor in June 2013, federal law required employers to recognize all legally valid same-sex marriages – regardless of the state in which the couple resided – for all federal tax and ERISA Title 1 purposes. Those requirements remain unchanged. Monday’s action simply expanded the number of states where same-sex couples can legally marry.
For Oklahoma employers, here’s a quick rundown of the implications related to same-sex spouses:
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Tax-qualified retirement plans – Same-sex spouses must be treated the same as opposite-sex spouses. Additionally, if an employer-sponsored retirement plan currently defines “spouse” or “marriage” as between two people of the opposite gender, the plan documents must be amended by December 31, 2014.
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Spousal health care coverage – Federal law, including the Affordable Care Act, does not require employers to provide coverage to either same-sex or opposite-sex spouses. However, private-sector employers who now wish to extend benefits to same-sex spouses need to amend their plan documents to reflect this change.
Join us for a special webinar October 22nd
While the Windsor decision addressed a number of issues involving federal employment law and the 
provision of certain employee benefits, many questions remained unanswered. McAfee & Taft’s Labor & Employment and Employee Benefits Groups will be hosting a special webinar titled “Same‑Sex Spouses: What the changing legal landscape means for employers” on Wednesday, October 22, to address these issues and provide practical advice to navigating the potentially murky waters ahead.
Find out more information and register here.
