Pricing Out Marriage

Who says you can’t put a price tag on marriage equality? Not the Wil­liams Institute for Sexual Orientation Law and Public Policy, a think tank at the UCLA School of Law that studies the economic impact of same-sex marriage and other public policy issues of importance to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities.

Consider these findings from two recent studies.

Number of married, same-sex couples living in Massachusetts (as of September 2008):

12,167

Average cost of a same-sex wedding:

$7,400

Average number of out-of-state guests attending a same-sex wedding:

16

Approximate increase in state room- occupancy-tax revenue per same-sex marriage:

$1,600

Approximate total economic boost to the state economy from same-sex marriage:

$111 million

Increased likelihood that young, highly educated same-sex couples would move to Massachusetts after legalization of gay marriage:

2.5 times

The studies, Marriage Equality and the Creative Class and The Business Boost from Marriage Equality, were released in mid-May on the eve of the fifth anniversary of same-sex marriages in Massachusetts.