D.C. city council votes to legalize gay marriage

The legislation would allow gay couples from anywhere in the country to marry in the city. Those couples who live in the district would be entitled to all rights afforded to heterosexual married couples under district laws.

Although a final signature on the bill by Mayor Adrian M. Fenty could come by the end of the week, same-sex marriage opponents vowed to step up their effort to get Congress or a court to block the initiative during the 30-day congressional review period.

The 11-to-2 Council decision, which caps a nearly yearlong debate, set off a wave of excitement across the gay community, both locally and nationally.

“In many ways, this is the final prize,’’ said Council member Jim Graham, one of two Council members who are openly gay.

According to an analysis by the Office of the Chief Financial Officer, more than 10,000 same-sex couples from across the country could marry in the district over the next three years if the measure becomes law.

The analysis, done in the weeks leading up to yesterday’s historic Council vote, estimates that 2,000 gay couples who live in the district will marry shortly after the law takes effect. But the bulk of the weddings, which could pump millions of dollars into the regional economy, would probably be out-of-state couples unable to marry in their own states, according to the analysis, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Post. It concludes that at least $5 million, and perhaps as much as $22 million, would be generated by same-sex weddings in the district over the next three years.

Local and national gay-rights leaders pointed out that opponents face a difficult fight: Both the Democratic-controlled House and Senate and President Obama would all have to block the legislation, which is unlikely.

But Council member David A. Catania, the bill’s sponsor and the other openly gay member on the council, cautioned that Congress also could unravel the measure through budget maneuvers in future years.

“There is no question: We are going to have to be defending it and defending it and defending it until the other side realizes they are losing more votes by being tethered to the past,’’ Catania said.

Several opponents of same-sex marriage warned that the celebrations were premature. They are seeking a public vote on the issue, and some planned to meet with members of Congress today.

“God’s war has just started,’’ Bob King, a community activist who lives in Northeast, said a few minutes after the vote. “Shame on them. We’re going to get to the ballot box through either the courts or the Congress. So tell everyone: Don’t let the marriage licenses start flowing.’’

Still, same-sex marriage supporters heralded the Council’s action, saying it helps the movement rebound from the stinging defeat suffered two weeks ago when the New York Senate rejected same-sex marriage.

“This is a place people come to see the Constitution and understand what it means to be equal, so symbolically this means a great deal,’’ said Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, a national gay rights group that cosponsored a party with the Council last night.

Same-sex marriages are legal in Iowa, Connecticut, Vermont, and Massachusetts. Next month, New Hampshire joins the list.

In the weeks leading to the council’s vote, the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington tried to amend the bill because it feared that it would force its charities to extend spousal benefits to same-sex couples. Church and city officials said they will continue talks toward an agreement that would not lead to discrimination against same-sex couples.

Deacon Maccubbin, owner of a bookstore in Dupont Circle, plans to get officially married as soon as possible.

“We have done the church wedding, but we want to have the license, right here in the District of Columbia,’’ he said.