When two women, both doctors in their 40s, wanted to get married in Montgomery County in the summer of 2013, they contacted the register of wills. D. Bruce Hanes was on board with issuing the marriage license, but first had to consult with the county commissioners.
“It was a team, collegial effort, that came to the conclusion that we were going to do it, and we did do it,” Hanes said at the Sept. 30 endorsement meeting of the Liberty City LGBT Democratic Club.
He was the first in the state to offer marriage licenses to gay couples, just one month after the Supreme Court declared unconstitutional Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act. At the time, Pennsylvania still had a ban on same-sex marriage.
Hanes issued 176 licenses before the Commonwealth Court told him to stop.
“Perhaps recently you’ve heard about a lady down in Kentucky where the court has told her to do things, and she has decided not to do those things,” he said. “I just want to point out, when the court told me to shut up and sit down — that is to say, stop issuing marriage licenses — that is exactly what I did. Immediately. Completely.”
About 20 Liberty City members gathered at the William Way LGBT Community Center in the Gayborhood to vote on candidates to endorse in the Nov. 3 election.
Hanes spoke, along with Josh Shapiro and Dr. Valerie A. Arkoosh, who are both running against two Republicans for three spots on the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. Allan Domb, a real-estate mogul known as the “Condo King” in Rittenhouse Square, also spoke as part of his campaign for Philadelphia City Council.
Liberty City ultimately endorsed 10 candidates running in Philadelphia, Montgomery and Chester counties and statewide: Kevin Dougherty (endorsed in the primary and still endorsed for the general election), Christine Donohue and David Wecht for justices on the state Supreme Court; Michael Wojcik for judge of the Commonwealth Court; Domb and Derek Green for at-large positions on Philadelphia City Council; Shapiro and Arkoosh for Montgomery County commissioners; Hanes for register of wills and clerk of the orphans court in Montgomery County; and Lani Frank for register of wills and clerk of the orphans court in Chester County.
Shapiro emphasized the importance of expanding on progressive leadership in Philadelphia, calling it “critically important” to “build that coalition out into the suburbs.”
“We cannot only win with progressives just here in Philadelphia,” he said. “We must win by bringing a progressive core to our suburban counties. If we do that, statewide we’re unstoppable on these issues, whether it’s issues of other progressive values or LGBT values.”
When Shapiro took office in 2012, it was the first time Montgomery County had a Democrat-controlled board in 150 years, he said.
Arkoosh, a physician by trade who specializes in obstetrics, said she currently serves as the interim medical director of the Montgomery County Health Department. As Arkoosh helps in the search for a permanent medical director, she said it was important to find a professional who is sensitive to LGBT concerns — particularly for same-sex couples who are in the hospital for the births of babies to bring into their families or transgender individuals with specialized health needs.
“I know that a healthy community is one where every person is treated with dignity and respect,” Arkoosh said, “where every definition of a family is part of the core of that community.”
When Domb addressed Liberty City members, he focused on his financial goals for Philadelphia. He said the city had $1.6 billion in delinquent taxes last year. He estimated that about $400 million of that could have been recouped.
Domb would also like to introduce city legislation that would require tax-preparing entities to cross-reference information from tax forms with eligibility requirements for Earned Income Tax Credits. He said many residents don’t know they’re eligible for the credits. Last year, Domb said, 40,000 people who are considered part of the city’s “working poor” could have received a total of $100 million in tax credits had they applied.
Julie Chovanes, a trans lawyer in Philadelphia, asked Domb if there would be a way to consolidate the several organizations that deal with abandoned properties.
“We’re trying to start trans clinics and some of the houses would be ridiculously helpful for the LGBT community, especially the kids,” Chovanes said, noting the difficulty in moving properties through the system with so much bureaucracy.
Domb said Philadelphia has 40,000 parcels that aren’t paying taxes; 10,000 are lots and 30,000 are properties. He suggested cleaning up some of those issues by transferring all the delinquent properties into a trust and putting them back into service for the public. Domb said, if elected, he will look more specifically into the process of dealing with abandoned and delinquent properties.