Employers Ponder DOMA Ruling

The Washington Post reports:

“What’s the federal government going to do when you have a valid marriage in New York and the couple moves to Texas? We don’t know the answer to that,” said Scott Macey, president of the ERISA Industry Committee that represents large employers. The confusion is creating uncertainty for many companies that operate nationwide and want to administer benefit plans in a uniform manner. “This affects a thousand laws and regulations that touch employee benefits,” said Bruce Elliott, manager of compensation and benefits at the Society for Human Resource Management, an industry association. But many questions were left unanswered by the court. What happens if an employee lives in Maryland, which allows same-sex marriages, but works in neighboring Virginia, which doesn’t? What happens to an employee who has a valid gay marriage in Iowa, but then moves to Alabama, which doesn’t recognize same-sex marriages?