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More Same-Sex Couples Identify That Way According To 2009 Census Bureau Data

10/05/10-by Bridgette P. LaVictoire
The US Census Bureau has released the data from the 2009 American Community Survey, and the Williams Institute has analyzed the data. One of the big discoveries is that the number of same-sex couples who identified themselves as spouses or unmarried partners increased three times the rate of population growth between 2008 and 2009. The estimated number of same-sex couples in the US jumped from 564,743 to 581,300. The number of Americans increased only around one percent.

The number of same-sex couples who indicated one or the other as husband or wife increased from 149,956 to 152,121. Those who designated themselves as unmarried partners went from 414,787 to 429,179. The probable reason for the jump has to do with the growing acceptance of lesbians and gays in the nation.

Gary J. Gates, a Williams Distinguished Scholar, stated “As states legally recognize the relationships of same-sex couples and social stigma declines, these data suggest that more couples are willing to identify themselves as such on government surveys like the American Community Survey.”

Next year, the Census Bureau will release official data regarding same-sex couples from the 2010 Decennial Census, though there is evidence that the number of same-sex couples counted is lower than it should have been.

According to the press release about the data

Other findings from the newly released data show evidence of a disproportionate effect of the economic downturn on same-sex couples, particularly male couples, relative to their different-sex married counterparts. While the average household income of same-sex couples exceeded that of different-sex married couples ($104,048 vs. $93,351, respectively) in 2009, the incomes of same-sex couples fell by 3% between 2008 and 2009. This compares to a 1.8% decline among different-sex married couples. Same-sex male couples were particularly affected as evidenced by the 4.4% decline in their household incomes. This figure also exceeds the 3.6% decline in income among all households in the US.