HF 1805

as introduced - 88th Legislature (2013 - 2014) Posted on 04/25/2013 10:18am

A bill for an act
relating to civil law; providing for civil union relationships; substituting
civil union contracts for marriage for purposes of Minnesota law; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 363A.27; 517.01; 517.02; 517.03; 517.07;
517.08; 517.10; 517.101; 517.20; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota
Statutes, chapter 517; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 517.04;
517.041; 517.05; 517.06; 517.09; 517.13; 517.14; 517.15; 517.16; 517.18.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 363A.27, is amended to read:

363A.27 CONSTRUCTION OF LAW.

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to:

(1) mean the state of Minnesota condones homosexuality or bisexuality or any
equivalent lifestyle;

(2) authorize or permit the promotion of homosexuality or bisexuality in education
institutions or require the teaching in education institutions of homosexuality or
bisexuality as an acceptable lifestyle; or

(3) authorize or permit the use of numerical goals or quotas, or other types
of affirmative action programs, with respect to homosexuality or bisexuality in the
administration or enforcement of the provisions of this chapter; or.

(4) authorize the recognition of or the right of marriage between persons of the
same sex.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 517.01, is amended to read:

517.01 MARRIAGE A CIVIL UNION CONTRACT.

Marriage A civil union, so far as its validity in law is concerned, is a civil contract
between a man and a woman two individuals, recognized by the state of Minnesota, to
which the consent of the parties individuals, capable in law of contracting, is essential.
Lawful marriage may be contracted only between persons of the opposite sex and only A
civil union contract is only valid when a license has been obtained as provided by law and
when the marriage civil union is contracted in the presence of two witnesses and solemnized
by one authorized, or whom one or both of the parties in good faith believe to be authorized,
so to do. Marriages subsequent to April 26, 1941, not so contracted shall be null and void.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 517.02, is amended to read:

517.02 PERSONS CAPABLE OF CONTRACTING.

Every person who has attained the full age of 18 years is capable in law of contracting
marriage a civil union, if otherwise competent. A person of the full age of 16 years may,
with the consent of the person's legal custodial parents, guardian, or the court, as provided
in section 517.08, receive a civil union license to marry, when, after a careful inquiry into
the facts and the surrounding circumstances, the person's application for a license and
consent for marriage a civil union of a minor form is approved by the judge of the district
court of the county in which the person resides. If the judge of the district court of the
county in which the person resides is absent from the county and has not by order assigned
another judge or a retired judge to act in the judge's stead, then the court commissioner or
any judge of district court of the county may approve the application for a license.

The consent for marriage civil union license of a minor must be in the following form:

STATE OF MINNESOTA, COUNTY OF .................... (insert county name)

I/We ........................... (insert legal custodial parent or guardian names) under oath
or affirmation say:

That I/we are the legal custodial parent(s) or guardian of ...........................
(insert name of minor), who was born at ........................... (insert place of birth) on
........................... (insert date of birth) who is presently the age of ....... (insert age).

That the minor has not been previously married entered a civil union.

That I/we consent to the marriage civil union of this minor to ...........................
(insert name of the person minor intends to marry join in civil union) who is of the age
of ....... (insert age).

That affidavit is being made for the purpose of requesting the judge's consent to
allow this minor to marry enter a civil union and make this marriage civil union legal.

Date: .............................

.....................................................................................................

.....................................................................................................

(Signature of legal custodial parents or guardian)

Sworn to or affirmed and acknowledged before me on this ....... day of .................... .

..........................................

NOTARY PUBLIC

STATE OF MINNESOTA, COUNTY OF .................... (insert county name).

The undersigned is the judge of the district court where the minor resides and grants
the request for the minor to marry enter into a civil union contract.

................................ (judge of district court)

................................ (date).

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 517.03, is amended to read:

517.03 PROHIBITED MARRIAGES AND CIVIL UNION CONTRACTS.

Subdivision 1.

General.

(a) The following marriages and civil union contracts
are prohibited:

(1) a marriage or civil union entered into before the dissolution of an earlier marriage
or civil union contract of one of the parties individuals becomes final, as provided in
section 518.145 or by the law of the jurisdiction where the dissolution was granted;

(2) a marriage or civil union between an ancestor and a descendant, or between
a brother and a sister, whether the relationship is by the half or the whole blood or by
adoption; and

(3) a marriage or civil union between an uncle and a niece, between an aunt and a
nephew, or between first cousins, whether the relationship is by the half or the whole blood,
except as to marriages permitted by the established customs of aboriginal cultures; and.

(4) a marriage between persons of the same sex.

(b) A marriage entered into by persons of the same sex, either under common law or
statute, that is recognized by another state or foreign jurisdiction is void in this state and
contractual rights granted by virtue of the marriage or its termination are unenforceable in
this state.

Subd. 2.

Developmentally disabled persons; consent by commissioner of
human services.

Developmentally disabled persons committed to the guardianship of
the commissioner of human services and developmentally disabled persons committed
to the conservatorship of the commissioner of human services in which the terms of the
conservatorship limit the right to marry enter a civil union, may marry enter a civil union
on receipt of written consent of the commissioner. The commissioner shall grant consent
unless it appears from the commissioner's investigation that the marriage civil union is
not in the best interest of the ward or conservatee and the public. The local registrar in
the county where the application for a license is made by the ward or conservatee shall
not issue the license unless the local registrar has received a signed copy of the consent
of the commissioner of human services.

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 517.07, is amended to read:

517.07 LICENSE.

Before any persons are joined in marriage a civil union in Minnesota, a license shall
be obtained from the local registrar of any county within Minnesota. The marriage civil
union need not take place be formally entered in the county where the license is obtained
but must take place within the geographical borders of Minnesota.

Sec. 6.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 517.08, is amended to read:

517.08 APPLICATION FOR LICENSE.

Subd. 1a.

Form.

Application for a marriage civil union license shall be made by
both of the parties individuals upon a form provided for the purpose and shall contain
the following information:

(1) the full names name of the parties and the sex of each party each individual;

(2) their post office addresses and county and state of residence;

(3) their full ages;

(4) if either party individual has previously been married, the party's individual's
married name, and the date, place and court in which the marriage was dissolved or
annulled or the date and place of death of the former spouse;

(5) if either individual has previously been a party to a civil union, the date of the
civil union, and the place and court in which the civil union was dissolved;

(6) if either party individual is a minor, the name and address of the minor's parents
or guardian;

(6) (7) whether the parties individuals are related to each other, and, if so, their
relationship;

(7) (8) the address of the bride and groom individuals after the marriage civil
union is entered to which the local registrar shall send a certified copy of the marriage
certificate civil union contract;

(8) (9) the full names the parties name each individual will have after marriage the
civil union contract is entered and the parties' each individual's Social Security numbers
number. The Social Security numbers must be collected for the application but must not
appear on the marriage license. If a party an individual listed on a marriage application
civil union application does not have a Social Security number, the party individual must
certify on the application, or a supplement to the application, that the party individual
does not have a Social Security number;

(9) (10) if one or both of the parties to the marriage license individuals has a felony
conviction under Minnesota law or the law of another state or federal jurisdiction, the
parties individuals shall provide to the county proof of service upon the prosecuting
authority and, if applicable, the attorney general, as required by section 259.13; and

(10) (11) notice that a party an individual who has a felony conviction under
Minnesota law or the law of another state or federal jurisdiction may not use a different
name after marriage the civil union is entered except as authorized by section 259.13,
and that doing so is a gross misdemeanor.

Subd. 1b.

Term of license; fee; premarital education.

(a) The local registrar
shall examine upon oath the parties individuals applying for a license relative to the
legality of the contemplated marriage civil union. If one party individual is unable to
appear in person, the party individual appearing may complete the absent applicant's
information. The local registrar shall provide a copy of the marriage application to the
party individual who is unable to appear, who must verify the accuracy of the appearing
party's individual's information in a notarized statement. The marriage license must not
be released until the verification statement has been received by the local registrar. If at
the expiration of a five-day period, on being satisfied that there is no legal impediment to
it, including the restriction contained in section 259.13, the local registrar shall issue the
license, containing the full names of the parties individuals before and after marriage the
civil union is entered, and county and state of residence, with the county seal attached,
and make a record of the date of issuance. The license shall be valid for a period of six
months. Except as provided in paragraph (c), the local registrar shall collect from the
applicant a fee of $115 for administering the oath, issuing, recording, and filing all papers
required, and preparing and transmitting to the state registrar of vital statistics the reports
of marriage a civil union required by this section. If the license should not be used within
the period of six months due to illness or other extenuating circumstances, it may be
surrendered to the local registrar for cancellation, and in that case a new license shall issue
upon request of the parties individuals of the original license without fee. A local registrar
who knowingly issues or signs a marriage license in any manner other than as provided in
this section shall pay to the parties individuals aggrieved an amount not to exceed $1,000.

(b) In case of emergency or extraordinary circumstances, a judge of the district court
of the county in which the application is made may authorize the license to be issued at
any time before expiration of the five-day period required under paragraph (a). A waiver
of the five-day waiting period must be in the following form:

STATE OF MINNESOTA, COUNTY OF .................... (insert county name)

APPLICATION FOR WAIVER OF MARRIAGE CIVIL UNION LICENSE
WAITING PERIOD:

................................................................................. (legal names of the applicants)

Represent and state as follows:

That on ......................... (date of application) the applicants applied to the local
registrar of the above-named county for a license to marry for a civil union.

That it is necessary that the license be issued before the expiration of five days
from the date of the application by reason of the following: (insert reason for requesting
waiver of waiting period)

.............................................................................................................

.............................................................................................................

.............................................................................................................

WHEREAS, the applicants request that the judge waive the required five-day
waiting period and the local registrar be authorized and directed to issue the marriage
grant the civil union license immediately.

Date: .............................

.......................................................................................

.......................................................................................

(Signatures of applicants)

Acknowledged before me on this ....... day of .................... .

..........................................

NOTARY PUBLIC

COURT ORDER AND AUTHORIZATION:

STATE OF MINNESOTA, COUNTY OF .................... (insert county name)

After reviewing the above application, I am satisfied that an emergency or
extraordinary circumstance exists that justifies the issuance of the marriage civil union
license before the expiration of five days from the date of the application. IT IS HEREBY
ORDERED that the local registrar is authorized and directed to issue the license forthwith.

.....................................................

................................ (judge of district court)

................................ (date).

(c) The marriage license fee for parties who have completed at least 12 hours of
premarital education is $40. In order to qualify for the reduced license fee, the parties must
submit at the time of applying for the marriage license a statement that is signed, dated,
and notarized or marked with a church seal from the person who provided the premarital
education on their letterhead confirming that it was received. The premarital education
must be provided by a licensed or ordained minister or the minister's designee, a person
authorized to solemnize marriages under section 517.18, or a person authorized to practice
marriage and family therapy under section 148B.33. The education must include the use of
a premarital inventory and the teaching of communication and conflict management skills.

(d) The statement from the person who provided the premarital education under
paragraph (c) must be in the following form:

"I, .......................... (name of educator), confirm that .......................... (names of
both parties) received at least 12 hours of premarital education that included the use of a
premarital inventory and the teaching of communication and conflict management skills.
I am a licensed or ordained minister, a person authorized to solemnize marriages under
Minnesota Statutes, section 517.18, or a person licensed to practice marriage and family
therapy under Minnesota Statutes, section 148B.33."

The names of the parties in the educator's statement must be identical to the legal
names of the parties as they appear in the marriage license application. Notwithstanding
section 138.17, the educator's statement must be retained for seven years, after which
time it may be destroyed.

(e) (c) If section 259.13 applies to the request for a marriage civil union license, the
local registrar shall grant the marriage civil union license without the requested name
change. Alternatively, the local registrar may delay the granting of the marriage civil
union license until the party individual with the conviction:

(1) certifies under oath that 30 days have passed since service of the notice for a
name change upon the prosecuting authority and, if applicable, the attorney general and no
objection has been filed under section 259.13; or

(2) provides a certified copy of the court order granting it. The parties individuals
seeking the marriage license shall have the right to choose to have the license granted
without the name change or to delay its granting pending further action on the name
change request.

Subd. 1c.

Disposition of license fee.

(a) Of the marriage civil union contract
license fee collected pursuant to subdivision 1b, paragraph (a), $25 must be retained by
the county. The local registrar must pay $90 to the commissioner of management and
budget to be deposited as follows:

(1) $55 in the general fund;

(2) $3 in the state government special revenue fund to be appropriated to the
commissioner of public safety for parenting time centers under section 119A.37;

(3) $2 in the special revenue fund to be appropriated to the commissioner of health
for developing and implementing the MN ENABL program under section 145.9255;

(4) $25 in the special revenue fund is appropriated to the commissioner of
employment and economic development for the displaced homemaker program under
section 116L.96; and

(5) $5 in the special revenue fund, which is appropriated to the Board of Regents
of the University of Minnesota for the Minnesota couples on the brink project under
section 137.32.

(b) Of the $40 fee under subdivision 1b, paragraph (b), $25 must be retained by the
county. The local registrar must pay $15 to the commissioner of management and budget
to be deposited as follows:

(1) $5 as provided in paragraph (a), clauses (2) and (3); and

(2) $10 in the special revenue fund is appropriated to the commissioner of
employment and economic development for the displaced homemaker program under
section 116L.96.

Subd. 4.

Report.

The local registrar of each county shall annually report to the
Department of Health the number of marriage licenses issued in the county for which
the fee in subdivision 1b, paragraph (a), was paid and the number for which the fee in
subdivision 1b, paragraph (b), was paid.

Sec. 7.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 517.10, is amended to read:

517.10 CERTIFICATE; WITNESSES.

The person solemnizing a marriage local registrar of each county shall prepare and
sign a certificate. The certificate shall contain the full names of the parties individuals
before and after marriage the civil union contract, the birth dates of the parties individuals,
and county and state of residences of the parties individuals and the date and place of the
marriage civil union. The certificate shall also contain the signatures of at least two of the
witnesses present at the marriage time the civil union contract was signed, who shall be at
least 16 years of age. The person solemnizing the marriage registrar shall immediately
make a record of such marriage civil union contract, and file such certificate with the
local registrar of the county in which the license was issued within five days after the
ceremony civil union contract was signed. The local registrar shall record such certificate
in the county marriage civil union records.

Sec. 8.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 517.101, is amended to read:

517.101 CERTIFIED COPIES OF MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE.

Within ten days of receipt of the certificate and after recording the certificate the
local registrar shall prepare a certified copy of the certificate to be mailed to the married
parties individuals subject to the civil union contract.

Sec. 9.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 517.20, is amended to read:

517.20 APPLICATION.

Except as provided in section 517.03, subdivision 1, paragraph (b), (a) All marriages
and civil unions contracted within this state prior to March 1, 1979 or outside this state
that were valid at the time of the contract or subsequently validated by the laws of the
place in which they were contracted or by the domicile of the parties individuals are
valid in this state.

(b) Marriages that are valid under paragraph (a) are treated as civil union contracts
under this chapter and the laws of the state of Minnesota.

Sec. 10.

[517.22] MARRIAGE BY RELIGIOUS INSTITUTION NOT
PROHIBITED.

(a) Nothing in this chapter prohibits a religious institution or cultural group from
performing a ceremony of marriage according to any applicable rules or customs of the
institution or group. A licensed or ordained minister may be a witness to the signing of a
civil union contract as required by section 517.10.

(b) Notwithstanding a marriage ceremony performed by a religious institution or
cultural group, the individuals participating in that ceremony are not entitled to the rights,
benefits, or privileges of Minnesota law resulting from a civil union contract until such
civil union contract is lawfully signed and entered as provided in this chapter.

(c) This chapter does not alter or affect the protections or exemptions provided in
chapter 363A for a religious association, educational institution, business, labor union,
place of public accommodation, employer, or other person. This chapter does not affect
the exemptions provided in section 363A.26.

Sec. 11.

[517.23] MEANING OF CIVIL UNION CONTRACT.

Wherever the term "marriage," "marital," "marry," or "married" is used in Minnesota
statute in reference to the rights, obligations, or privileges of a couple under law, the term
shall include a civil union contract, or individuals subject to a civil union contract, as
established by this chapter. A term subject to this definition must also be interpreted in
reference to the context in which it appears, but may not be interpreted to limit or exclude
any individual who has entered a valid civil union contract under this chapter.

Sec. 12.

[517.24] EFFECT ON FEDERAL LAW AND IN OTHER
JURISDICTIONS.

To the extent that the term "marriage" is given legal effect in federal law or the
law of another jurisdiction, a Minnesota civil union is the equivalent of a marriage and
individuals who have entered into a civil union contract shall be treated as "spouses" or
shall be treated as "husband" and "wife" for purposes of application to those laws.

Sec. 13. REPEALER.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 517.04; 517.041; 517.05; 517.06; 517.09; 517.13;
517.14; 517.15; 517.16; and 517.18, are repealed.

Sec. 14. EFFECTIVE DATE.

Sections 1 to 13 are effective August 1, 2013, and apply to civil union contracts
applied for on or after that date. After August 1, 2013, the local registrar of each county
is prohibited from accepting or processing an application for a marriage license that is
inconsistent with the requirements of this act.