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The LGBTQI+ Economic and Financial (LEAF) Survey

The LGBTQI+ Economic and Financial (LEAF) Survey: Understanding the Financial Lives of LGBTQI+ People in the United States, a report by MAP and the Center for LGBTQ Economic Advancement and Research (CLEAR,) shines new light on the financial experiences and issues faced by LGBTQI+ people in the U.S.

Filling in critical gaps left by many federal and financial industry surveys that fail to include LGBTQI+ demographics, the report analyzes results from a survey of 2,505 LGBTQI+ and 503 non-LGBTQI+ adults, conducted from December 2022 to January 2023. Some key findings include:

  • LGBTQI+ people reported losing the ability to rely financially on their families after coming out. While 73% of LGBTQI+ respondents said they could rely financially on their family before telling them about their sexual orientation, only 62% could do so after coming out.  The gap was even greater for transgender respondents.

  • Four in ten parents (40%) reported having some out-of-pocket legal costs related to family formation. Additionally, 43% of LGBTQI+ parents had spent $1,000+ on out-of-pocket healthcare costs for family formation; nearly a third (32%) had spent $5,000+.

  • Most respondents who received gender-affirming care (82%) reported spending some money out-of-pocket. Nearly half (46%) of people who had received gender-affirming care spent $5,000+ out-of-pocket; one-third (33%) had spent at least $10,000 out-of-pocket.

  • LGBTQI+ people were more likely to report negative feelings about their finances than positive ones. Roughly twice as many LGBTQI+ respondents as non-LGBTQI+ respondents reported feeling anxious, overwhelmed, and depressed about their finances.

  • One in ten LGBTQI+ respondents (11%) said they had experienced discrimination in banking or financial services


Recommended citation format:
Center for LGBTQ Economic Advancement and Research and Movement Advancement Project. March 2023. The LGBTQI+ Economic and Financial (LEAF) Survey: Understanding the Financial Lives of LGBTQI+ People in the United States. https://www.mapresearch.org/leaf-survey-report.

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Sexual Orientation Policy Tally

The term “sexual orientation” is loosely defined as a person’s pattern of romantic or sexual attraction to people of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or more than one sex or gender. Laws that explicitly mention sexual orientation primarily protect or harm lesbian, gay, and bisexual people. That said, transgender people who are lesbian, gay or bisexual can be affected by laws that explicitly mention sexual orientation.

Gender Identity Policy Tally

“Gender identity” is a person’s deeply-felt inner sense of being male, female, or something else or in-between. “Gender expression” refers to a person’s characteristics and behaviors such as appearance, dress, mannerisms and speech patterns that can be described as masculine, feminine, or something else. Gender identity and expression are independent of sexual orientation, and transgender people may identify as heterosexual, lesbian, gay or bisexual. Laws that explicitly mention “gender identity” or “gender identity and expression” primarily protect or harm transgender people. These laws also can apply to people who are not transgender, but whose sense of gender or manner of dress does not adhere to gender stereotypes.

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