Congressman Jerrold Nadler, chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, joined Reps. Frank, Baldwin, Polis, Israel and others in persuading the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to include same-sex marriage statistics in the 2010 Census. The lawmakers made the case to OMB Director Peter Orszag in a May 14, 2009 letter, arguing that several states now recognize same-sex marriage and that the integrity of the Census results will hinge on its inclusion of comprehensive data on all types of American families. Previously, the Bush administration had interpreted the federal Defense of Marriage Act as prohibiting the release of data regarding same-sex married couples, an interpretation which President Obama has discarded.

“I am thrilled to be a part of this effort to recognize same-sex married couples in our census data,” said Nadler. “The 2010 Census will be much more accurate and meaningful as a result. And, until the LGBT community is fully recognized by the federal government’s policies and programs, LGBT Americans will never be rendered equal in the eyes of the public, and America will not be the truly representative democracy it strives to be. With the Obama administration’s willingness to consider the expansion of rights to LGBT Americans, with the leadership of Reps. Frank, Baldwin and Polis and the members of the LGBT Equality Caucus, and with the increasingly tolerant views of the American people, we are poised to make great strides in LGBT rights.”