The Supreme Court's ruling overturning the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act will alter a host of ethics and campaign finance laws that apply to elected and appointed officials as well as campaign donors. Ethics laws requiring disclosure of spousal income, banning gifts to spouses from certain sources and banning nepotism will now apply to elected, executive and federal agency officials in same-sex marriages and unions. Also, married same-sex couples will now be able to give joint contributions from a single bank account to political campaigns. These changes underline how much the DOMA affected federal statutes, beyond those debated when the law was passed. The court, in the ruling issued Wednesday, noted that, because of DOMA, key "government-integrity rules do not apply to same-sex spouses."
Supreme Court Gay Marriage Ruling Will Tighten Ethics And Campaign Finance Laws
