Study: Washington
State could gain up to $5.7 million a year from
same-sex marriage

A new study released by the Williams Institute, a think tank at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law, has found that legalizing same-sex marriage in Washington State could increase the state's revenues by $3.9 million to $5.7 million annually. Wedding-related expenditures and increases in tax revenue from same-sex weddings account for the predicted rise. The study should alleviate concerns that a state's finances could be hurt when gay married couples begin to receive tax benefits previously reserved only for straight married couples. The study also predicts that allowing same-sex marriage would increase wedding-related business by as much as $63 million a year. This study is the 11th consecutive work to acknowledge the economic benefits of allowing same-sex marriage. Forbes magazine predicted that allowing same-sex marriage nationally would generate $16.8 billion in spending over the first several years. (The Advocate)