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- 26, By Weissmann The Defense of Marriage Act is largely good and gone, meaning that same-sex spouses can finally enjoy the same federal rights as heterosexual couples, at least in states that recognize their relationships. If you're a bit fuzzy on what exactly that means, don't worry: It's a lot for anybody to wrap their head around. The federal code includes an estimated 1, provisions that award "benefits, rights, and privileges" based on marriage status. And of those rights come with a price tag. Think social-security benefits or tax breaks. In total, they can be worth thousands of dollars per year. Below, I've pulled out a few examples, just to provide a small, quantified taste of how the federal government has been financially discriminating against married gays and lesbians these last several years. Joint Tax Filing: Worth $2, Per Year You often hear about the "marriage penalty" in the. tax code. But couples usually those where one spouse earns significantly more than the other end up saving cash by filing jointly, an opportunity that until now has been denied to gays and lesbians.. Badgett of UCLA's Institute, a think tank that focuses on LGBT issues, estimated what that was costing them in a law-review article titled "The Economic Value of Marriage for Same-Sex Couples." She found that in Massachusetts, 66 percent of and lesbian couples would have saved an average of $2, on their IRS if allowed to file jointly. About 11 percent would no change, and 23 percent would pay an average of $ more. Social Security Survivor Benefits: Worth $5, Per Year Gays and lesbians pay into Social Security just like the rest of us, but until now, they haven't enjoyed the same payoff. Most couples don't make the same salaries over their career, so when a married American retires, the Social Security Administration gives them two options: They can receive their own benefits, based on years of earnings, or receive one half of their spouse's monthly benefit whichever is higher. If the breadwinner of a couple dies, the surviving husband or wife is entitled to receive their spouse's more generous benefits instead of their own. Tweet