Mikey Rox and Earl Morrow
- Hometown: New York, NY
Mikey and Earl got hitched in Connecticut in September 2010. While it was a cause for celebration -- Connecticut was only the third state to legalize gay marriage -- the federal government still doesn't recognize their marriage, leaving them with a slew of extra costs that heterosexual couples don't have to pay.
Mikey, who is self-employed, gets his health benefits through Earl's employer-sponsored insurance plan. But since they aren't married in the eyes of the government, they're required to pay taxes on Mikey's benefits -- amounting to roughly $2,500 a year.
This cost would disappear if the Supreme Court votes to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act, a 1996 law that defines marriage as solely between a man and a woman.
They would also be able to boost their income tax refund by nearly $2,000 by filing jointly.
"I know what our relationship means to us ... so [striking down DOMA is] not as important to me symbolically as it is financially," said Earl.
