Texas National Guard Bases To Process Benefits For Gay Couples

The Texas National Guard on Tuesday announced that it would no longer bar gay and lesbian couples from registering for benefits at state-owned bases.

“We're going to go back to business as usual,” Lt. Col. Joanne MacGregor, a spokeswoman for the Texas National Guard, told the San Antonio Express-News.

In response to a Supreme Court ruling that gutted the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which prohibited federal agencies from recognizing the legal marriages of gay couples, the Pentagon announced it would recognize such marriages for the purpose of benefits.

As of September 3, service members in a marriage with a member of the same sex could apply for spousal benefits.

But National Guard bases in nine states refused to process the requests and instead encouraged gay troops to enroll at bases operated by the Department of Defense.

Major General John Nichols, the commander of the Texas National Guard, argued that the Guard was bound by Texas law, which doesn't recognize the marriages of gay couples.

The Texas Military Forces, the umbrella command of all Texas National Guard units, said in a statement that the registrations would be handled by federal personnel.

“The Department of Defense has approved a new procedure for enrolling National Guard members and their dependents in benefit programs,” the statement read. “The new procedure essentially recognizes the conflict between the Texas Constitution and DOD policy mandating the enrollment of same-gender dependent spouses in benefits programs.”