PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Buckles, Kasey
AU  - Guldi, Melanie
AU  - Price, Joseph
TI  - Changing the Price of Marriage
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.46.3.539
DP  - 2011 Jul 01
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 539--567
VI  - 46
IP  - 3
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/46/3/539.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/46/3/539.full
SO  - J Hum Resour2011 Jul 01; 46
AB  - We use state repeals of blood test requirements (BTRs) for a marriage license that occurred between 1980 and 2008 to examine the impact of changes in the price of marriage on the marriage decision. Using a within-group estimator that holds constant state and year effects and exploits variation in the repeal dates of BTRs across states, we find that BTRs are associated with a 6.1 percent decrease in marriage licenses issued by a state. This main finding is supported with results from individual-level marriage license and Current Population Survey data. The largest effects are found for lower socioeconomic groups.