ExxonMobil Extending Benefits to Same-Sex Spouses

IRVING, Texas -- Three months after the U.S. Supreme Court declared a key part of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional, Exxon Mobil Corp. will begin offering benefits to legally married same-sex couples.

The Irving, Texas-based oil company said it will recognize "all legal marriages" when it determines eligibility for health care plans for the company's 77,000 employees and retirees in the United States. The new policy goes into effect tomorrow, Oct.1, according to a report by The Associated Press.

In United States v. Windsor, the Supreme Court struck down Section 3 of DOMA, which codified non-recognition of same-sex marriages for all federal purposes, including insurance benefits, and allowed states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages granted in other states. In recent months, federal agencies have begun to offer benefits to legally married same-sex couples.

"We haven't changed our eligibility criteria. It has always been to follow the federal definition and it will continue to follow the federal definition," ExxonMobil spokesman Alan Jeffers said in an AP interview.