Marriage equality in the US injected approximately state and local economies by an estimated $3.8 billion, and generated an estimated $244.1 million in state and local sales tax revenue since 2015, when the US Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that the country’s constitution guarantees all couples the right to marry, extending marriage to same-sex couples throughout. This spending, by the way, supported an estimated 45,000 jobs for one full year.
This is according to “The Economic Impact of Marriage Equality Five Years after Obergefell v. Hodges”, a study done by the Williams Institute at California’s UCLA School of Law.
The Williams Institute study included figures and estimates based on data from the US Census Bureau.
Approximately 293,000 LGBTQIA couples tied the knot since the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of marriage equality.
“Marriage equality has changed the lives of same-sex couples and their families,” said the study’s lead author Christy Mallory. “It has also provided a sizable benefit to business and state and local governments.”
Broken down, the amounts spent were:
- Some $3.2 billion on weddings
- $544 million by traveling wedding guests
- $244 million in state and local taxes
The US is one of only 28 United Nations’ member states recognizing marriage equality.
