New Paltz Might Not Be Best Place to Wed

A mix-up has prompted the U.S. Social Security Administration to reject dozens of legitimate marriage licenses from a New York town, confusing it with a village where disallowed same-sex marriages were performed.

Social Security has been rejecting all marriages performed in New Paltz, north of New in the Hudson Valley, since Feb. 27.

But the order appears to confuse the Town of New Paltz with the Village of New Paltz, where on Feb. 27 the mayor began issuing same-sex marriage licenses, which have since been declared invalid.

The village is a centuries-old community that physically forms part of the town but is a separate administrative entity.

About half of the 10,000 townspeople live in the village.

“We never issued any licenses for same-sex couples,” New Paltz Town Clerk Marian Cappilino said Monday.

“They have no cause to deny my signed and sealed licenses. We have two governments here: a village and a town.”

There was no comment from Social Security, whose website carries instructions to staff not to accept any marriage documents as proof of identity from “New Paltz, N.Y.”

The federal agency’s website also tells offices to disregard marriage licenses issued from clerk’s offices in Asbury Park, N.J.; Multnomah County, Ore.; and Sandoval County, N.M.; where same-sex weddings were performed.

Cappilino had advice for couples having trouble being recognized.

“I’ve been telling them go to the Department of Motor Vehicles first,” she said.

“They’re accepting my licenses. And then go to Social Security.”