TALLAHASSEE— The first couple issued a same-sex marriage license in Florida is suing the state, saying that its Bureau of Vital Statistics still won’t allow hospitals to list both same-sex parents on birth certificates.
Cathy Pareto and Karla Arguello filed the lawsuit last Thursday in federal court in Tallahassee. Pareto and Arguello recently had twins. Two other married, same-sex couples also are part of the lawsuit: Debbie and Kari Chin of St. Petersburg; and Yadira Arenas and Alma Vezquez of Winter Haven. The plaintiffs are represented by the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and Florida attorneys Mary Meeks and Elizabeth Schwartz.
“Attorney General Pam Bondi could have avoided yet another costly lawsuit by directing all state agencies to simply comply with the law. Instead she turned her back on repeated requests to take action,” said Nadine Smith, Executive Director of Equality Florida. “Birth certificates are the first official document that represent a new born baby’s family. Having an inaccurate birth certificate hinders parents’ ability to take care of their child and access important legal benefits and protections. Denying our families this is not only spiteful and harmful, it is illegal.”
The State of Florida is violating the law every day that it denies accurate birth certificates to children born to married same-sex couples,” said Shannon Minter, NCLR’s Legal Director. “After months of urging the Bureau of Vital Statistics to comply with the law, we are asking the court to put an end to the harms the Bureau is causing. The children in these families deserve to be protected, and the State of Florida’s continuing disregard for their well-being is unconscionable.”
According to Equality Florida, not having an accurate birth certificate denies children with same-sex parents the dignity, legitimacy, security, support, and protections available upon birth to children of married different-sex parents. It also prevents parents from taking care of their children’s everyday needs like obtaining healthcare, making medical decisions, signing up for daycare, and enrolling in government programs and benefits. The lawsuit asks the court to order the Department of Health and the Bureau of Vital Statistics to stop violating the law by refusing to issue birth certificates that list both parents when a child is born to a married same-sex couples, just as the State of Florida does for children born to married different-sex spouses.
In August of last year, Judge Robert L. Hinkle issued a decision striking down Florida’s marriage ban and ordering state officials, including Florida’s Surgeon General, who oversees the Department of Health, to treat married same-sex couples and their children equally in all respects. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a nationwide ruling, confirming that state marriage bans are unconstitutional. Ironically, the new lawsuit has been assigned to Judge Linkle’s court.
Florida’s ban on same-sex marriage ended Jan. 6.