Editor's Notes: So long, 1913
Wicked Local Warham
By David R. Smith
Aug 07, 2008
Both houses of the Massachusetts Legislature voted to repeal the
so-called “1913 law” toward the end of their respective sessions last month.
Both the law and its repeal have not been given much mainstream press,
largely, I suspect, because its been treated mainly as a “gay” issue. The repeal
should have been given wider play, if for no other reason that it is good
economic news for the state.
The law prevented people from outside Massachusetts from coming to the state
to marry if their marriage would not be recognized in the couple’s home state.
As best as anyone can tell, the law was enacted to keep interracial couples from
coming to Massachusetts during a time when such unions were still illegal in
many states.
Our former governor (and failed presidential hopeful) Mitt Romney dusted off
the law after Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriages in 2004 (how will
history judge him for using a law rooted in one form of bigotry to perpetuate
another?).
Many legislators, regardless of which box they check off on a census, felt
the law should be taken off the books, if for no other reason than its racist
roots.
So that’s the background. While no one in favor of legalizing same-sex
marriages throughout the country would try to claim that the Legislature’s
decision does not open the door to legal challenges in states where such
marriages are not allowed, Massachusetts residents will reap the benefits the
law’s repeal.
The state recently commissioned the Los Angeles-based Williams Institute to
examine the economic impact of extending marriage to nonresident same-sex
couples. The center, which advertises itself as “advancing critical thought in
the field of sexual orientation law and public policy,” is obviously not a
right-leaning think tank, so its findings were likely to highlight the benefits
of out of state couples marrying in Massachusetts.
The institute predicts the repeal of the law would boost the Massachusetts
economy by a total of $111 million over a three-year period (or $37 million each
year). Of that, $4 million of the three-year total would come from sales and
occupancy tax revenues, and $1.1 million would come from marriage license fees.
The study also predicted about 330 new jobs would be created during that time
period. Through a variety of factors, such as the estimated number of same-sex
couples throughout the country and competition from California, the institute’s
study estimated that about 32,000 same-sex couples would come to Massachusetts
to marry.
The timing is important here, since New York, which already recognizes legal
same-sex marriages performed in other states and countries, is likely to
legalize same-sex marriage when Joseph Bruno, the state’s Senate majority
leader, retires next year. Bruno has been the one roadblock to passage of
same-sex marriage in New York. The Williams Institute estimates that 44 percent
of New York’s same-sex couples will come to Massachusetts to marry. It’s
important for our state to capture that money before New York legalizes same-sex
marriage (New Mexico and Rhode Island also recognize same-sex marriages
performed in other states).
The usual suspects, the groups with a questionable number of members who
usually have “family” somewhere in their titles, received their undue share of
media time and space decrying efforts to repeal the law. Why they should resist
the move is beyond me. After all, shouldn’t they prefer to have same-sex couples
come to the state, marry, maybe spend a few days here and then leave? The other
option would be to have them relocate full-time to the state and possibly move
in next door.
