Exploring the Social Security Benefit Implications of Same-Sex Marriage

Abstract

Same-sex marriage became legal nationwide in the United States on June 26, 2015. Federal legalization of same sex marriage expands the pool of individuals potentially eligible for spousal benefits from Social Security to the estimated 4% of the population that is lesbian, gay, or bisexual. This chapter is a foundational step to better understand the potential impact of the expansion of marriage rights to same-sex couples on Social Security. We primarily use data from the 2011-2015 American Community Survey to describe the economic circumstances of heterosexual and same-sex households. We estimate the anticipated social security benefit amounts for these individuals, as well as eligibility to claim spousal benefits. We estimate the size of the gay and lesbian populations by age and sex from 2017-2040 using standard demographic methods. Finally, we supplement the analyses with new data from the RAND American Life Panel.