Iowa Reaping Benefits Of Gay Marriage

Oct 4, 2013 7:22 AM

Gayrights advocates, like Governor Quinn and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, say the state is losing money because couples go to places like Iowa or Minnesota to tie the knot. Iowa’s Scott County Recorder Rita Vargas says businesses in Iowa may be reaping the benefits.

Vargas says there’s no way to know if the couples are actually spending money on the Iowa or the Illinois side of the Mississippi River. In fact, she says the odds are very good that the two states are sharing any revenue that comes from the couples' journeys. Vargas says about half of their marriage licenses go to gay couples. Based on that stat, Scott County has cashed in on about 17-thousand-dollars since April of this year. Governor Quinn says that’s money that could be coming into Illinois. He’s urging lawmakers to get a bill on his desk.