Marquette, MI – (Great Lakes Radio News) – The federal government will recognize some 300 same-sex marriages performed last Saturday in Michigan.
Attorney General Eric Holder said the couples will be eligible for all relevant federal benefits on the same terms as other same-sex marriages.
In January, he issued the same decision for about 1,300 same sex couples in Utah that were married during a 17-day window before the U.S. Supreme Court put a district court judge’s ruling on hold until further appeals are considered.
Governor Rick Snyder said earlier this week that the same-sex marriages that took place in four counties last weekend are legal, however they won’t be recognized by the state.
The marriages took place after the 6th U-S Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Michigan’s ban on same-sex marriages and before a stay was issued on that ruling.