Big Money Raised in Colorado Over Gay Marriage Amendment

A new report from the non-partisan National Institute on Money in State Politics examines the money behind the 2006 state-level constitutional amendments banning gay marriage including Amendment 43 in Colorado, which was approved by 55 percent of voters.

The report found that Colorado gay-rights activist Tim Gill personally donated and raised a total of $5.3 million to oppose the amendments nationwide, which was about 38 percent of the money spent opposing the amendments. Proponents of the measures raised only one third of what opponents raised, but the amendments passed in eight of nine states.

continued…Much of the money spent supporting the gay-marriage bans also came from Colorado. National Christian organization the Arlington Group, of which Focus on the Family is a leading member, gave $1.65 million.

More than one third of the total spent on the campaigns nationally was raised in Colorado. But while Amendment 43 was passed by Colorado voters, those trying to defeat it raised almost four times the amount that proponents raised.

Read the full report here.