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RI: Only 39 Couples Have Entered Into Civil Unions

Friday, November 25th, 2011

Rhode Island Civil UnionsOnly 39 couples in Rhode Island have obtained civil unions since state lawmakers gave same-sex couples the option earlier this year.

The Rhode Island American Civil Liberties Union compiled the number, which they say shows that gay and lesbian couples see civil unions as a poor substitute for marriage.

RI ACLU Executive Director Steven Brown says the numbers are “ridiculously low” and calls the new law a “fiasco.”

Full Story from The Republic

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: Gay Couples Leaving State to Marry

Wednesday, November 9th, 2011

Rhode Island Marriage EqualityDespite Rhode Island’s new civil union law, we’ve learned a growing number of gay couples are crossing the border or moving out of state to get married. And some studies show Rhode Island could be missing out on millions in wedding costs and tax dollars.

We’ve learned only 14 couples have entered into civil unions since the law passed this summer. But census data shows nearly 600 gay couples from Rhode Island spent their wedding day and their cash in other states.

For newlyweds Sarah and Theresa Masnik, it was love at first sight. The URI and Roger Williams grads met in Providence, where they lived together for four years. “That’s where we met,” says Theresa. “That’s where we fell in love, where we had our first date on Federal Hill.

Full Story from WPRI

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: Governor’s Wife Officiates at Gay Couple’s Civil Union

Sunday, November 6th, 2011

Rhode Island Marriage EqualityRhode Island First Lady Stephanie Chafee on Saturday officiated over the civil union of gay couple Lynn McKinney and Ron Margolin, The Providence Journal reported.

The men, who met 34 years ago, exchanged vows in front of 250 guests at one of Newport’s gilded mansions, the Rasecliff.

“Ron and Lynn, do you enter into this civil union of your own fee will?” Chafee asked the couple, who responded in the affirmative.

Full Story from On Top Magazine

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: First Lady to Perform Civil Union Ceremony

Sunday, October 23rd, 2011

Rhode Island Marriage EqualityRhode Island first lady Stephanie Chafee has announced she’ll officiate over a civil union for a lesbian couple, the Associated Press reported.

Chafee will officiate over the civil union of Lynn McKinney and Ron Margolin at their November 5 ceremony in Newport.

The women first asked Governor Lincoln Chafee – a backer of gay marriage who earlier this year took heat for supporting and signing into law the state’s civil unions law – but he was unable to attend due to a previous engagement.

Full Story from On Top Magazine

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: Groups Try to Repeal Religious Exception in Civil Unions Law

Thursday, October 13th, 2011

Rhode Island Civil UnionsA controversial provision of Rhode Island’s recently enacted civil unions law comes under the microscope.

The National Organization for Marriage of Rhode Island says religious groups are under attack by the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups that want to repeal a provision of the civil union law, which allows those opposing civil unions to decline to provide services or accomodations.

Full Story from WPRO

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: Civil Union Law Excludes Gay Couples From State Estate Tax Exemption

Monday, October 10th, 2011

Rhode Island Civil UnionsSusan Gershkoff, a Lincoln lawyer specializing in estate planning, thought that the state’s recently passed civil-union law would allow her gay clients to take advantage of a significant benefit that married couples receive: an exemption from the Rhode Island estate tax. She was wrong.

The reason is that the tax — currently applicable when an estate exceeds $859,350, but not when an estate is passed on to a surviving spouse — is closely tied to federal law.

And federal law is subject to the Defense of Marriage Act, in which the federal government defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman.

Full Story From Projo.com

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: ACLU Report Says Skip Civil Union, Wait for Marriage Equality

Friday, October 7th, 2011

Rhode Island Civil UnionsThe Rhode Island chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has issued a scathing report on the state’s recently passed civil unions law, calling it “a complete bust.”

The primary reasons for this conclusion include broad religious exemptions “that undermine the unions’ value,” marriage equality in neighboring Massachusetts and Connecticut and 12 years of waiting for nuptials for same-sex couples.

“Rhode Island’s civil union law, enacted over the strong protests of the community it was designed to benefit, has been a fiasco. In the first two months of its enactment, only 14 gay and lesbian couples have taken advantage of the statute to obtain “civil union” status,” said the report. “No other state that has passed a law formally recognizing gay and lesbian couples has seen such a paltry and lackluster response to its passage… The lesson is clear: if Rhode Island is serious about recognizing the status of lesbian and gay couples, full marriage equality is the only appropriate response, and one that the General Assembly must take up.”

Full Story from Edge Boston

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: Gay Groups Pressure Senator Reed to Support DOMA Repeal

Thursday, September 29th, 2011

Defense of Marriage Act RepealA group that favors recognition of gay marriage has launched a campaign to get Sen. Jack Reed to support the repeal of a law that, for purposes of federal benefits, defines marriage as between men and women.

“Reed is the only member of the Rhode Island Congressional delegation who has yet to cosponsor the Respect for Marriage Act,” according to a news release from the group, Marriage Equality Rhode Island, that has issued an open letter asking Reed to change his position. The “Respect” bill would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, which President Bill Clinton signed into law in 1996.

The letter to Democrat Reed argues, in part, that the federal law should be changed because several states have passed laws recognizing gay marriage and others, including Rhode Island, recognize gay couples married under state jurisdictions.

Full Story from Projo.com

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: ACLU Calls Civil Unions Law a Fiasco

Monday, September 26th, 2011

Rhode Island Civil UnionsThe Rhode Island chapter of the ACLU says since civil unions were made legal for gay and lesbian couples about two months ago, extremely few couples have taken advantage of the ruling. That, says the ACLU, proves the law is a fiasco — compared to giving those couples the right to marry.

According to census figures reported by The Providence Journal, Rhode Island had just over 3,600 same-sex households in 2010. But the Rhode Island chapter of the ACLU said just 14 gay or lesbian couples have gotten civil unions since they became legal.

The ACLU released a report Monday, “Two Months of Civil Unions in Rhode Island: Already Time for a Divorce?” It details how the civil unions law has had a lackluster response, and it cites three major reasons why couples aren’t getting united:

Full Story from WPRI

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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RI: Only Nine Couples Get Civil Unioned

Monday, August 15th, 2011

Rhode Island Civil UnionsFew Rhode Islanders are seeking civil unions more than a month after the state began offering them to same-sex couples.

Only nine couples were joined in a civil union in July, the first month licenses were available.

Dawn Euer, a spokeswoman for Marriage Equality Rhode Island, says couples may be skipping civil unions to hold out for true marriage. Her group plans to push gay marriage legislation in the Ocean State again next year.

Full Story from AP

Click here for gay wedding resources in Rhode Island.

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