Take Action! Marriage Equality Bill Being Heard in Assembly Appropriations!

EQUALITY CALIFORNIA

ACTION ALERT
Take Action! Marriage Equality Bill Being Heard in Assembly Appropriations!

Equality California-sponsored Assembly Bill 19: the Religious Freedom and Civil
Marriage Protection Act, authored by Assemblymember Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) will
be heard in the Assembly Appropriations Committee TOMORROW, Wednesday May 18th. We
need you to support the 10 members of the committee that have co-authored AB 19 and
the three other members who have committed to voting for it. It is critical that we
inform legislators about the vast and positive fiscal impact of marriage equality,
which would mean huge savings for Californian taxpayers and significant economic
gains for the state. Gay and lesbian families would also finally begin to have the
same financial security that non-gay families enjoy.

PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW! If you are registered in our advocacy center, you can simply
reply to this message and an email will automatically be sent. If you're not yet
registered in our Action Center, please Click here NOW to
(http://action.eqca.org/alert)
(http://www.eqca.org/siteapps/advocacy/index.aspx?c=9oINKWMCF&b=35891)

According to a study co-authored by the Williams Project, a think tank at UCLA
School of Law, and the Institute for Gay and Lesbian Strategic Studies (IGLSS) at
the University of Massachusetts-Amherst that is in the current issue of the Stanford
Law & Policy Review, passage of this legislation will have a significant positive
impact on California's state budget, a potential gain of up to $30 million each
year.

Additionally, according to the study, California would benefit from a boom in
tourism. The study concludes that if same-sex marriage were permanently offered,
each year California would benefit from over $100 million in increased business
revenues -- generating over $7 million in sales tax revenues for the State. (Forbes
magazine estimates that if same-sex marriage were legalized across the U.S., gay
weddings would generate $16.8 billion in spending during the first several years.)

The Williams Project study reaches similar conclusions as the Congressional Budget
Office (CBO), the Comptroller of New York, the Office of Legislative Research of the
Connecticut General Assembly, and the Vermont Civil Union Review Commission. All of
these sources have concluded that recognition of the rights of same-sex couples will
have a positive impact on federal or state budgets.

PLEASE TAKE ACTION NOW! Click here NOW to (http://action.eqca.org/alert)
(http://www.eqca.org/siteapps/advocacy/index.aspx?c=9oINKWMCF&b=35891)

You should also call to encourage your legislator to support this historic bill. You
can find your legislator's contact information by clicking here or visiting
http://www.legislature.ca.gov.

Thank you!
Geoffrey Kors
Executive Director
Equality California

We Can't Do It Without YOU!

EQCA is taking action in the legislature and throughout the state to defend against
attacks on LGBT civil rights, while moving toward our goal of full equality for all.
We are now asking you for your support. Our work is possible only because of people
like you. Please join Equality California today, renew your membership, or make a
special gift.


Join EQCA
(https://www.kintera.org/AutoGen/Simple/Donor.asp?ievent=90203&en=omJVI7NTIhLTK6PULgKQLdP5LtIaJgNSIeIULkM2IfKTKeO4IsJ3KiO7LAJ)


Renew Your Membership Today
(https://www.kintera.org/AutoGen/Simple/Donor.asp?ievent=90203&en=omJVI7NTIhLTK6PULgKQLdP5LtIaJgNSIeIULkM2IfKTKeO4IsJ3KiO7LAJ)


Make a Special Gift to EQCA Today
(https://www.kintera.org/AutoGen/Simple/Donor.asp?ievent=90203&en=omJVI7NTIhLTK6PULgKQLdP5LtIaJgNSIeIULkM2IfKTKeO4IsJ3KiO7LAJ)


The Latest EQCA News and Information...

Visit EQCA's Legislative Center for Information on this and other bills... more
(http://www.eqca.org/site/apps/nl/content2.asp?c=9oINKWMCF&b=40337&ct=689419)

Email To Elected Officials

I am writing to urge you to support Assembly Bill 19: the Religious Freedom and
Civil Marriage Protection Act, authored by Assemblymember Mark Leno (D-San
Francisco) and sponsored by Equality California. The bill will be heard in the
Assembly Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, May 18th and if passed, will be a
financial win for the State Budget, California Businesses and the tens of thousands
of families who will benefit from an end to the financial hardships that result from
marriage inequality.

According to a study co-authored by the Williams Project, a think tank at UCLA
School of Law, and the Institute for Gay and Lesbian Strategic Studies (IGLSS) at
the University of Massachusetts-Amherst that is in the current issue of the Stanford
Law & Policy Review, passage of this legislation will have a significant positive
impact on California's state budget, a potential gain of up to $30 million each
year. Additionally, according to the study, California would benefit from a boom in
tourism. The study concludes that if same-sex marriage were permanently offered,
each year California would benefit from over $100 million in increased business
revenues -- generating over $7 million in sales tax revenues for the State. (Forbes
magazine estimates that if same-sex marriage were legalized across the U.S., gay
weddings would generate $16.8 billion in spending during the first several years.)
The study reaches similar conclusions as the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the
Comptroller of New York, the Office of Legislative Research of the Connecticut
General Assembly, and the Vermont Civil Union Review Commission. All of these
sources have concluded that recognition of the rights of same-sex couples will have
a positive impact on federal or state budgets.

As a Californian who cares about equality and the financial well-being of our state,
I urge you to support AB 19.