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发帖数: 2153 | 1 ALBANY — Much of the excitement over the approval of same-sex marriage in
New York last year centered on New York City, home to a large gay community
whose members flocked to city marriage bureaus starting last July. But
statistics released by the state on Wednesday show that more than 2,300 same
-sex couples have wed in other communities in the state since the Marriage
Equality Act took effect.
Of the same-sex couples who specified their gender, 1,393 were made up of
two women, and 983 of two men, according to the State Health Department,
which compiled the statistics.
The same-sex marriages made up about 7 percent of the more than 34,000
unions that the state has recorded since July 24, the day gay men and
lesbians were first allowed to marry.
New York City tracks its licenses separately from the state, and did not
have statistics available on Wednesday.
The statistics probably underestimate the number of same-sex marriages,
because recording the gender of the two people seeking a marriage license is
optional on the forms used by clerks’ offices around the state, and 20
percent of the licenses issued since last July did not specify the gender of
the people getting married. Also, city and town clerks report marriage data
to the state at varying speeds, meaning the statistics released on
Wednesday do not account for some same-sex weddings that have taken place
over the past month or two.
The Legislature voted to legalize same-sex marriage last June. The vote,
which came after a fierce lobbying campaign from advocates on both sides,
made New York the sixth and largest state to legalize same-sex marriage.
Since then, Washington State has legalized same-sex marriage, and Maryland
and New Jersey are debating whether to do the same.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/16/nyregion/state-data-on-same-s |
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