Oklahoma is set to become the latest state to deny military benefits to same-sex couples, the Associated Press reports. Governor Mary Fallin ordered the National Guard to stop processing the benefits on the grounds that doing so violates the state’s ban on granting the benefits of marriage to gay couples.
Oklahoma joins Texas, Alabama and Mississippi in defying a Pentagon directive to allow active-duty military personnel to apply for same-sex spousal benefits. Florida and Kansas are reviewing their policies. A spokesperson for Fallin says that couples who have been legally married in other states can still apply for benefits at a federal facility (as opposed to a state-operated one).