NEW YORK — Divorce and unwed childbearing cost U.S. taxpayers more than $112 billion a year, according to a study commissioned by four groups advocating more government action to bolster marriages.
Sponsors say the study is the first of its kind and hope it will prompt lawmakers to invest more money in programs aimed at strengthening marriages. Two experts not connected to the study said such programs are of dubious merit and suggested that other investments — notably job creation — would be more effective in aiding all types of needy families.
There have been previous attempts to calculate the cost of divorce in America. But the sponsors of the study being released today said theirs is the first to gauge the broader cost of “family fragmentation” — both divorce and unwed childbearing.
The study was conducted by Georgia State University economist Ben Scafidi. His work was sponsored by four groups that consider themselves part of a “marriage movement”: the New York-based Institute for American Values, the Institute for Marriage and Public Policy, Families Northwest of Redmond, Wash., and the Georgia Family Council, an ally of the conservative Colorado Springs-based ministry Focus on the Family.
“The study documents for the first time that divorce and unwed childbearing — besides being bad for children — are costing taxpayers a ton of money,” said David Blankenhorn, president of the Institute for American Values.
Scafidi’s calculations were based on the assumption that households headed by a single female have relatively high poverty rates, leading to higher spending on welfare, health care, criminal justice and education for those raised in the homes.
The $112 billion estimate includes the cost of federal, state and local government programs and lost tax revenue.
The study suggests that state and federal lawmakers consider investing more money in programs intended to bolster marriages.
But Tim Smeeding, an economics professor at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University, who was not involved in the study, said he has seen no convincing evidence that marriage-strengthening programs work.
“I have nothing against marriage — relationship-building is great,” he said. “But alone it’s not going to do the job. A full-employment economy would probably be the best thing — decent, stable jobs.”
