February 5, 2004, Introduced by Reps. Wojno, Hummel, Bieda, Wenke, Gleason, Kooiman, Vander Veen, Sak, Richardville, Cheeks, Mortimer, Hoogendyk, Sheen and Taub and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
A bill to amend 1887 PA 128, entitled
"An act establishing the minimum ages for contracting marriages;
to require a civil license in order to marry and its
registration; to provide for the implementation of federal law;
and to provide a penalty for the violation of this act,"
by amending sections 3 and 4 (MCL 551.103 and 551.104), section 3
as amended by 1984 PA 346.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
1 Sec. 3. (1) Every
person who becomes An individual who is
2 18 years of age shall
be or older is capable by law of
3 contracting marriage. Every
person who becomes An individual
4 who is 16 years of age
but is less than 18 years of age shall
5 be is capable of contracting marriage with the
written consent
6 of 1 of the individual's
parents of the person or the person's
7 or of the individual's legal guardian, as provided in this
8 section. As proof of
age, the a party to the intended
9 marriage, in addition to the statement of age in the application,
1 when requested by the county clerk, shall submit a birth
2 certificate or other
proof of age. The
3 (2) A county clerk on the application made shall fill out
4 the blank spaces of the license according to the sworn answers of
5 the applicant, taken
before the county clerk , or some person
6 duly authorized by law to
administer oaths. When If it appears
7 from the affidavit sworn
statement that either the applicant is
8 applying for a license
for the marriage to a person who has not
9 become an individual who is not 18 years of age or
older or that
10 the applicant has not
become is not 18 years of age or older,
11 or both, persons
applying for a license are less than 18 years
12 of age, the county clerk shall require that there first
be
13 produced the written consent of 1 of the parents of each of
the
14 persons individual who is less than 18 years of age or
of the
15 person's individual's legal guardian be produced.
The consent
16 shall be to the marriage and to the issuing of the license for
17 which application is made. The consent shall be given personally
18 in the county clerk's
presence of the county clerk or shall be
19 acknowledged before a notary public or other officer authorized
20 to administer oaths unless the person does not have a living
21 parent or guardian.
22 (3) A county clerk shall not issue a marriage license to an
23 individual who fails to sign and file with the county clerk an
24 application for a marriage license that includes a statement with
25 a check-off box indicating that both parties to the intended
26 marriage have or have not received premarital education.
27 (4) A license shall not be issued by the county clerk until
1 the requirements of this section are complied with. The written
2 consent shall be preserved on file in the office of the county
3 clerk. If the parties are legally entitled to be married, the
4 county clerk shall sign the license and certify the fact that it
5 is properly issued, and the clerk shall make a correct copy of
6 the license in the books of registration.
7 (5) (2) A
fee of $20.00 shall be paid by the party
8 applying for the license.
which shall be paid by the The county
9 clerk shall pay the
fee into the county general fund. of the
10 county. The county board of commissioners shall allocate
$15.00
11 of each fee collected to the circuit court for family counseling
12 services, which shall include counseling for domestic violence
13 and child abuse. If family counseling services are not
14 established in the county, the circuit court may use the money
15 allocated to contract with public or private agencies providing
16 similar services. Funds
Money allocated to the circuit court
17 pursuant to by this section which are that is
not expended
18 shall be returned to the county
general fund of the county to
19 be held in escrow until circuit court family counseling services
20 are established. pursuant
to Act No. 155 of the Public Acts of
21 1964, as amended,
being sections 551.331 to 551.344 of the
22 Michigan Compiled
Laws. A probate court may order the
county
23 clerk to waive the marriage license fee in cases in which the fee
24 would result in undue hardship. If both parties named in the
25 application are nonresidents of the state, an additional fee of
26 $10.00 shall be paid by the party applying for the license, which
27 shall be deposited by
the county clerk shall deposit
into the
1 county general fund.
of the county. The county clerk shall give
2 the license filled out and signed, together with the blank form
3 of certificate, to the party applying, for delivery to the
4 clergyman cleric or magistrate who is to officiate at
the
5 marriage.
6 (6) On the
return of the a license to the county clerk,
7 with the cleric's or
magistrate's certificate of the clergyman
8 or magistrate that the marriage has been performed, the county
9 clerk shall record in the book of registration in the proper
10 place of entry the information prescribed by the director of
11 public community health. The licenses and
certificates issued
12 and returned shall be forwarded to the state registrar appointed
13 by the director of public
community health on the forms and in
14 the manner prescribed by the director.
15 (7) (3) A
charter county which that has a population of
16 over 2,000,000 may impose by ordinance a marriage license fee or
17 nonresident marriage license fee, or both, different in amount
18 than the fee prescribed
by subsection (2) (5). The charter
19 county shall allocate the fee for family counseling services as
20 prescribed by subsection (2)
(5). A charter county shall not
21 impose a fee which that
is greater than the cost of the service
22 for which the fee is charged. As used in this section and in
23 section 4, "premarital education" means a program that emphasizes
24 skill-building strategies and includes, at least, conflict
25 management, communication skills, financial matters, and, if the
26 couple has or intends to have children, child and parenting
27 responsibilities. The program shall be at least 4 hours long and
1 shall be conducted by 1 or more of the following individuals:
2 (a) A licensed professional counselor, licensed marriage and
3 family therapist, licensed or limited licensed psychologist, or
4 certified social worker or social worker licensed or registered
5 as required in article 15 of the public health code, 1978 PA 368,
6 MCL 333.16101 to 333.18838.
7 (b) A psychiatrist as that term is defined in section 100c
8 of the mental health code, 1974 PA 258, MCL 330.1100c.
9 (c) An official representative of a religious institution or
10 his or her designee.
11 Sec. 4. It shall
be the duty of the clergyman The cleric
12 or magistrate , officiating
at a marriage , to shall fill in
13 the spaces of the certificate left blank for the entry of the
14 time and place of the marriage, the names and residences of 2
15 witnesses, and his or her own signature in certification that the
16 marriage has been
performed by him and any and all information
17 or her. The cleric or magistrate shall fill in the appropriate
18 space of the certificate indicating whether the parties have or
19 have not received premarital education. Information required to
20 be filled in in the spaces left blank in the certificate shall be
21 typewritten or legibly printed. He or she shall separate the
22 duplicate license and
certificate, and deliver the half part
23 designated duplicate to 1
of the parties , so joined in to the
24 marriage, and within 10 days return the original to the county
25 clerk issuing the
same who issued them. It shall be the duty
26 of such clergyman The cleric or magistrate to shall
keep an
27 accurate record of all marriages solemnized in a book used
1 expressly for that purpose.