The Williams Institute

Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, this report provides demographic and economic information about same-sex couples and same-sex couples raising children in the District of Columbia. We compare same-sex "unmarried partners," which the Census Bureau defines as an unmarried couple who "shares living quarters and has a close personal relationship," to different-sex married couples in the District.

In many ways, the almost 4,000 same-sex couples living in the District are similar to married couples. According to Census 2000, they comprise 5.1% of all coupled households in the District, are racially and ethnically diverse, have partners that depend upon one another financially, and actively participate in the District's economy. Census data also show that 8% of same-sex couples in the District are raising children. However, same-sex couples with children have lower household incomes, on average, and lower rates of home ownership, compared to married couples.