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Hi Ed,
Thank you for the email and sharing your concerns with us. I partnered with the ** Benefits team at corporate in Fairfield and confirmed the following information:
The ** pension plan survivor annuity benefit does not treat a same-sex partner/spouse on essentially the same basis as an opposite-sex spouse . The spousal definition in this plan tracks to the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as solely between members of the opposite sex. Since our ** pension plan is federally governed (ERISA), state same-sex marriage and civil union laws do not apply. This is the situation regardless of the state in which the ** employee resides.