Studies: Legalizing same-sex marriage benefits the economy

May 31, 4:18 AMInternational LGBT Issues ExaminerKelvin Lynch

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The old maxim is true:  It's the economy, stupid. 

Five years after Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage, two new studies show a definite economic benefit to the state, according to MassLive.com.

Two new studies from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law suggest that Massachusetts has made some money.

The first study, "The Business Boost from Marriage Equality" concludes that between May 2004 and September 2008:

• Nearly half of married same-sex couples in Massachusetts spent $5,000 or more on wedding-related expenses. Nearly one-tenth spent over $20,000.
• Same-sex couples averaged 16 out-of-state guests at their weddings, and a quarter of them had 21 out-of-state guests.

The Williams Institute says, "More weddings mean more money. People buy gowns and wedding cakes and rent tuxedoes and limousines. Guests check into hotels."

The study estimates that same-sex marriage has led to a positive impact to the Massachusetts economy of approximately $111 million over the last four and a half years.  That's about $9000 per couple.

The boost is not exactly a boom for Massachusetts.  The authors of the study admit that wedding spending represents only a tiny fraction of all spending in the state.  Only just over 12,000 same-sex marriages have been performed in the state since the law took effect. 

But extrapolate their data to a state as large as California - 18.000 same-sex couples were married during the brief 5 months it was legal.  If that pace had been maintained (or grown), and Prop 8 hadn't passed, in the first year alone California could have earned a potential $388 million, at a time when crucial programs like mental health, education, and HIV/AIDS treatment programs are being cut because of a budget deadlock.

M.V. Lee Badgett, an economics professor at the University of Massachusetts, adds that giving same-sex couples equal legal status has benefitted the state in more ways than just dollars and cents.  "You go into big decisions like buying a house and having children with people you're going to stay with for a long time," says Badgett.

The second study from the Williams Institute, "Marriage Equality and the Creative Class," suggests economically desirable groups are attracted to states where same-sex marriage is legal.  Gary J. Gates, a UCLA researcher and author of the study, calls it the "creative class," which he describes as "young, mobile and highly educated individuals." 

According to him, these people have a capacity for innovation that is key to success in a post-industrial economy.  "Same-sex couples are more likely than the general population to be in the creative class," said Gates.  He found that "creative class workers" were 2.5 times more likely to move to Massachusetts after legalization of same-sex marriage than before it was legal.

If big population states like California get on board, these economic and cultural benefits have outstanding potential.  Better yet, if same-sex marriage is legalized at the federal level, it could be the saving grace the country is looking for in a deep global recession. Legalizing same-sex marriage at the federal level can help the United States regain its position as a global power and re-establish its cultural relevance. 

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