DOMA

Same-sex couples everywhere can report as 'husband or wife'

How do you describe your household partner? Take our poll...

"The 2010 Census will be the first to report counts of both same-sex partners and same-sex spouses," explains Adrienne Critcher of PACE, Louisiana's LGBT political outreach group that's working with U.S. Census Bureau.

U.S. Reps. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) Jared Polis (D-CO), along with John Lewis (D-GA) and Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) introduced the 'Respect for Marriage Act', a measure that would repeal the 'Defense of Marriage Act' (DOMA).

Community leaders were at a Capitol Hill press conference announcing the introduction of the bill.

The New York Times reports that strongly worded orders were submitted by two judges of the federal appeals court in California which said that employees of their court were entitled to health benefits for their same-sex partners under the program that insures millions of federal workers.

But the federal Office of Personnel Management has instructed insurers not to provide the benefits ordered by the judges, citing the Defense of Marriage Act.

Julie Phineas shows you the protest location in Long Beach, CA for the National DOMA Protest on Saturday January 10th, 2008.

Legislators from Connecticut passed a bill in 2005 which created civil unions - legal arrangements that provide some of the same benefits and responsibilities as marriage.

However, the state cannot provide the same federal benefits of marriage due to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which says no state need recognize a marriage between persons of the same sex, even if the marriage is recognized in another state. The Federal Government may not recognize same-sex marriages for any purpose either.