The Federal Election Commission has ruled that married gay couples must receive equal treatment under election laws and be allowed to make political contributions jointly from the same bank account.

The decision issued Thursday is one of the first legal reverberations of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision striking down part of the Defense of Marriage Act.

It was made in response to a filing by Republican Massachusetts state Rep. Daniel Winslow during his failed campaign for U.S. Senate.

The former chief legal counsel to former Gov. Mitt Romney tells The Boston Globe the decision "effectively doubles the campaign buying power ... of married gay couples in the United States."

Winslow says the decision will help him retire roughly $150,000 in campaign debt in part through contributions from gay couples.

[Associated Press]

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