When it comes to gay marriage, most people tend to view the issue in starkly moral terms. Same-sex marriage is usually either seen as an issue of civil rights and equal access to the law, or a revision of the intended definition of "marriage" and an affront to millennia of tradition.
Few people view it in terms of cash.
But according to a new study from UCLA, gay marriage could mean big bucks for a state. Specifically, the study looks at New Jersey, where the state Supreme Court gave lawmakers the option of legalizing gay marriage or same-sex civil unions.
They chose civil unions. But in doing so, according to the UCLA study, they were foregoing over $100 million a year in new revenues for the state (including new income from florists, caterers, hotels, etc.). The study didn't look at the financial impact of civil unions.
Lots of states that once opposed lotteries on moral grounds have recanted when they realized they could really use the money that gambling brings in. Wonder if the same thing could happen with gay marriage?
Zach Patton -- Executive Editor. Zach has written about a range of topics, including social policy issues and urban planning and design. Originally from Tennessee, he joined GOVERNING as a staff writer in 2004. He received the 2011 Jesse H. Neal Award for Outstanding Journalism
E-mail: zpatton@governing.com 
Written and compiled by staff writers and editors, GOVERNING View is an on-the-ground, and sometimes behind-the-scenes, look at the topics we're covering in print and online. From notes on what's up in statehouses, county courthouses and city halls, to encounters with people, places and things, GOVERNING View is a window into the side of state and local government you don't always see.
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