NJ gay couples celebrating at tax time, but married status also brings challenges
APRIL 12, 2014, 11:10 PM LAST UPDATED: SATURDAY, APRIL 12, 2014, 11:44 PM
BY STEPHANIE AKIN
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD
Tax time has been described as anxiety-inducing and unnecessarily confusing, and its inescapability has even been equated with death. Now, it’s being pointed to as a reason for celebration — at least by same-sex couples who for the first time can check off the box that says “married” on their 1040s.
Tim Eustace and his husband, Kevin, marked the occasion by going out to dinner in downtown Maywood, where they live. Jeff Farlow, 30, of Pine Hill posted his refund on Facebook. And Jeff Gardner, 45, of Hawthorne described a visit to the accountant with this incongruous adjective: “Momentous.”
Sure, filing as a newly married couple entails its own set of headaches, and filing for the first time as a same-sex married couple comes with an assortment of questions. But many said the symbolic significance is worth the hassle — at least this time around.
“It’s another act that points out that the government legally recognizes us as a legitimate couple,” said Charles Cumpston, a retired publishing executive from Fort Lee. “That’s pretty incredible.”