BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 1754 By: Crabb (Henderson) Jurisprudence 5-3-95 Senate Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND The Family Code authorizes only district and county judges to waive the required 72-hour waiting period following the issuance of a marriage license. According to the Office of Court Administration, there are currently 575 district and statutory county courts and 98 appellate court judges. Expanding this jurisdiction to include the appellate court judges would represent a 17 percent increase in those authorized to grant the waiver. PURPOSE As proposed, H.B. 1754 expands the list of judges authorized to waive the required 72-hour waiting period following the issuance of a marriage license to include a justice of the supreme court or a judge of the court of criminal appeals or a court of appeals. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Sections 1.82(c) and (d), Family Code, to authorize an applicant for a marriage license to request a justice of the supreme court, or a judge of the court of criminal appeals or a court of appeals for a written waiver permitting the marriage ceremony to take place during a 72-hour period immediately following the issuance of the marriage license. Requires the judge to execute the waiver, rather than authorizing the judge to grant an early hearing and requiring the judge to grant the order, if the judge finds that there is good cause for the marriage to take place during the 72-hour period. Makes conforming changes. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 1995. SECTION 3. Emergency clause.