LOS ANGELES – The election has not only brought marriage rights to same-sex couples in Maine, Maryland and Washington but it will also boost the economies of the three states according to a new report by the Williams Institute.
The report estimates that extending marriage to same-sex couples will generate more than $166 million in wedding spending in the first three years.
“This additional spending will be good for business, boost state and local tax revenues, and create new jobs,” said Lee Badgett, Williams Institute research director and professor of economics, University of Massachusetts Amherst.
The new estimates are based upon Census 2010 data, average wedding expenditures in the states and state tourism reports. The estimates assume that 50 percent of same-sex couples in each state will marry in the first three years, consistent with the experiences of other states that have opened marriage to same-sex couples.
The new estimates do not take into account resident same-sex couples who are already married in each state or registered as domestic partners. These couples may already have had a wedding or may spend less if they have already registered.
The estimates also do not include out-of-state same-sex couples that decide to travel to these states to marry. For example, more than 1,200 out-of-state couples traveled to Iowa in the first year the state opened marriage to same-sex couples.
Out-of-state couples would generate additional spending on wedding-related goods and services and, most likely, on tourism-related goods and services.
