BELLEVUE, Wash. — Online travel company Expedia.com on Tuesday announced its support for marriage equality and the efforts to approve Referendum 74 in Washington state, November ballot initiative asking voters to approve or reject the state’s new marriage equality law.

Supporting the ballot measure “is a natural extension of our ongoing commitment to the LGBT community,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, President and CEO of Expedia Inc., in a statement.

As the world’s largest online travel company – with operations in well over 30 countries – we know firsthand that the world is a diverse place. Much like our customers, clients, partners, and suppliers, our employees represent a multitude of locations, cultures, and experiences. We encourage Expedians to bring their collective intelligence and myriad skills to work every day to make travel more accessible for our customers. As such, we are committed to creating a workplace environment in which everyone thrives.

We strive to actively promote equality in our workplace and are committed to treating one another with respect and dignity. Part of our overall diversity efforts is providing a supportive environment for our Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) employees.

Today, we add our voice to the topic of marriage equality. We thoughtfully engage in this public discussion because it has a significant impact on our employees, customers, and partners, all with whom we interact daily. Supporting the legislation recently passed in Washington State – which provides same-sex couples with the same right to civil marriage that opposite-sex couples already enjoy – is a natural extension of our ongoing commitment to the LGBT community.

Therefore, Expedia, Inc. is proud to declare support of marriage equality for same-sex couples everywhere.

Expedia, based in Bellevue, Wash., was founded in 1996 by Microsoft and later spun off as a multi-billion dollar company — its portfolio consists of several online travel brands, including Expedia.com, Hotels.com, and Hotwire.com.

Washington United for Marriage (WUM), the broad coalition working to defend the state’s marriage law, announced Wednesday that more than 5,000 new donors helped raise $1.758 million during the month of August, raising the total campaign treasury to $7.290 million.

Tags: Expedia, Marriage Equality, Referendum 74, Travel, Washington (State)

Filed under: Washington (State)