Estimating the Economic Boost of Marriage for Same-Sex Couples in Wisconsin

Extending marriage to same-sex couples in Wisconsin would generate an estimated $34.3 million in spending to the state economy. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the most recent data available, 9,179 same-sex couples live in Wisconsin. Of those couples, the Institute estimates that fifty percent (4,590 couples) would choose to marry in the first three years, a pattern that has been observed in Massachusetts and elsewhere. The marriages that would occur in the first year alone would bring over $21.9 million in revenue to the state of Wisconsin that year