Information Alert: Study Says Divorce Costs Taxpayers

Victoria Cobb, President
Wednesday, April 16, 2008

A study released yesterday quantifies for the first time the cost of family fragmentation, including divorce, to the nation's taxpayers. The study, announced at a Washington, D.C. press conference, and published by the Institute for American Values, the Georgia Family Policy Council, the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy and Families Northwest, breaks the cost down by all fifty states.

According to the report The Taxpayer Costs of Divorce and Unwed Childbearing, "Family fragmentation costs U.S. taxpayers at least $112 billion each and every year." The study estimates that Virginians pay at least $776 million per year in additional taxes due to divorce and family fragmentation. The study states that the costs "arise from increased taxpayer expenditures of antipoverty, criminal justice, and education programs, and through lower levels of taxes paid by individuals who, as adults, earn less because of reduced opportunities as a result of having been more likely to grow up in poverty."

The study emphasizes that the numbers are minimum estimates and that the real costs are likely to be much greater.

The report states, "Public debate on marriage in this country has focused on the 'social costs' of family fragmentation (that is, divorce and unwed childbearing), and research suggests that these are indeed extensive. But marriage is more than a moral or social institution; it is also an economic one, a generator of social and human capital, especially when it comes to children."

Understanding the need to strengthen traditional marriage, last year The Family Foundation formed a marriage commission to study the issues of marriage and divorce in the Commonwealth. Two members of The Family Foundation's marriage commission took part in the study released yesterday. Maggie Gallagher, president of the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy, was a study cosponsor, and W. Bradford Wilcox, a University of Virginia professor, was a project advisor. Gallagher was also the keynote speaker at our 2006 Marriage Celebration Gala.

To begin to address the consequences of the retreat from marriage in Virginia, The Family Foundation's marriage commission recommended two proposals for the 2008 General Assembly Session:

HB 871 - The 1% Solution - this bill, patroned by Delegate Joe Johnson (D-4, Abingdon), would have directed 1 percent of unrestricted Temporary Assistance for Need Families Funds (TANF) to initiatives that encourage and strengthen marriage. The 1% solution has already been adopted by several states, including Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, New Mexico, New York, Texas and Utah. There are many healthy marriage programs doing valuable work in Virginia, but they are significantly limited by lack of funds. These programs provide marriage preparation courses, crisis intervention programs and other programs to assist couples in creating and maintaining healthy marriages.

The study references Texas saying, "Texas, for example, recently appropriated $15 million (TANF funds) over two years for marriage education and other programs to increase the stable marriage rates. If this program succeeds in increasing stably married families by just three tenths of 1 percent, it will be cost-effective in its returns to Texas taxpayers."

While HB 871 passed the General Assembly and was signed into law by the Governor, it was changed from a requirement to a policy suggestion. It will require a decision by the Governor's office to appropriate the money, something representatives of that office told legislators it would not do.

SB 725 - Mutual Consent for Divorce when children are involved - patroned by Senator Ken Cuccinelli (R-37, Centreville), this bill would have required that both parties in a no-fault divorce, when children are involved, consent to the divorce. The bill would also be prospective, applying only to marriages that take place after the law goes into effect. Currently, either spouse can unilaterally end a marriage without the consent of the other when there is no fault. The commitment required when children are present in a marriage deserves more protection from state law. Such protection would once again elevate the marriage commitment to a level of protection for both parties and their children. This legislation was never heard in committee.

Yesterday's report places special urgency on the issue of family fragmentation and divorce.

We have always known the social costs of divorce and family breakdown, but this report now gives us the actual monetary cost to Virginia's taxpayers. Government has a compelling interest in the issue of marriage because as social science proves, the health of marriage has everything to do with the welfare of our state's children, families, and communities. Now we can show that by strengthening marriage, we can also reduce the burden on taxpayers. It is time our legislators wake up to not only the social costs of divorce, but the economic costs as well.

The issue of divorce and the fragmentation of the family is obviously one of great emotion and affects nearly every family. We cannot, however, continue to ignore the issue out of fear. Divorce is hurting our society, and we have to work to strengthen marriage and produce healthy families. We have made reasonable policy suggestions to do this and we hope that this study motivates elected officials to act.

The report is available at www.americanvalues.org/html/coff_mediaadvisory.htm.

News Stories
Study estimates divorce penalty at $112 billion - Washington Times
Divorce, Unwed Parenting Costing Taxpayers - Associated Press