Offering a preview of what's to come in the 2010 Census, the Census Bureau has reported that almost 150,000 couples reported being in marriages last year:
"About 27 percent of the estimated 564,743 total gay couples in the
United States said they were in a relationship akin to 'husband' and 'wife,' according to the Census Bureau tally provided to The Associated
Press. That's compared with 91 percent of the 61.3 million total
opposite-sex couples who reported being married. A consultant to
the Census Bureau estimated there were roughly 100,000 official
same-sex weddings, civil unions and domestic partnerships in 2008. Analysts
said the disparities are probably a reflection of same-sex couples in
committed relationships who would get married if they could in their
states."
Previous years, however, have revealed even higher numbers (341,000 in 2007 and 390,000 in 2005 and 2006), a statistical disparity attributed to "confusing survey layouts and formatting errors."
