1-1     By:  Denny (Senate Sponsor - Ellis)                   H.B. No. 2069

 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 12, 1997;

 1-3     May 13, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on

 1-4     Jurisprudence; May 18, 1997, reported favorably by the following

 1-5     vote:  Yeas 5, Nays 0; May 18, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to certain information provided in an application for a

 1-9     marriage license.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  Section 2.004(b), Family Code, as added by S.B.

1-12     No. 334, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997, is

1-13     amended to read as follows:

1-14           (b)  The application form must contain:

1-15                 (1)  a heading entitled "Application for Marriage

1-16     License, ____________ County, Texas";

1-17                 (2)  spaces for each applicant's full name, including

1-18     the woman's maiden surname, address, social security number, if

1-19     any, date of birth, and place of birth, including city, county, and

1-20     state;

1-21                 (3)  a space for indicating the document tendered by

1-22     each applicant as proof of identity and age;

1-23                 (4)  spaces for indicating whether each applicant has

1-24     been divorced within the last 30 days;

1-25                 (5)  printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"

1-26     or "false" in response to the following statement:  "I am not

1-27     presently married.";

1-28                 (6)  printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"

1-29     or "false" in response to the following statement:  "The other

1-30     applicant is not related to me as:

1-31                       (A)  an ancestor or descendant, by blood or

1-32     adoption;

1-33                       (B)  a brother or sister, of the whole or half

1-34     blood or by adoption;

1-35                       (C)  a parent's brother or sister, of the whole

1-36     or half blood or by adoption; or

1-37                       (D)  a son or daughter of a brother or sister, of

1-38     the whole or half blood or by adoption.";

1-39                 (7)  printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"

1-40     or "false" in response to the following statement:  "I am not

1-41     presently delinquent in the payment of court-ordered child

1-42     support.";

1-43                 (8)  a printed oath reading:  "I SOLEMNLY SWEAR (OR

1-44     AFFIRM) THAT THE INFORMATION I HAVE GIVEN IN THIS APPLICATION IS

1-45     CORRECT.";

1-46                 (9) [(8)]  spaces immediately below the printed oath

1-47     for the applicants' signatures;

1-48                 (10) [(9)]  a certificate of the county clerk that:

1-49                       (A)  each applicant made the oath and the date

1-50     and place that it was made; or

1-51                       (B)  an applicant did not appear personally but

1-52     the prerequisites for the license have been fulfilled as provided

1-53     by this chapter;

1-54                 (11) [(10)]  spaces for indicating the date of the

1-55     marriage and the county in which the marriage is performed; and

1-56                 (12) [(11)]  a space for the address to which the

1-57     applicants desire the completed license to be mailed.

1-58           SECTION 2.  Section 2.009, Family Code, as added by S.B.

1-59     334, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997, is

1-60     amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (d) to

1-61     read as follows:

1-62           (a)  Except as provided by Subsections [Subsection] (b) and

1-63     (d), the county clerk may not issue a license if either applicant:

1-64                 (1)  fails to provide the information required by this

 2-1     subchapter;

 2-2                 (2)  fails to submit proof of age and identity;

 2-3                 (3)  is under 14 years of age and has not been granted

 2-4     a court order as provided by Section 2.103;

 2-5                 (4)  is 14 years of age or older but under 18 years of

 2-6     age and has not presented at least one of the following:

 2-7                       (A)  parental consent as provided by Section

 2-8     2.102;

 2-9                       (B)  documents establishing that a prior marriage

2-10     of the applicant has been dissolved; or

2-11                       (C)  a court order as provided by Section 2.103;

2-12                 (5)  checks "false" in response to a statement in the

2-13     application, except as provided by Subsection (b) or (d), or fails

2-14     to make a required declaration in an affidavit required of an

2-15     absent applicant; or

2-16                 (6)  indicates that the applicant has been divorced by

2-17     a decree of a court of this state within the last 30 days, unless:

2-18                       (A)  the applicants were divorced from each

2-19     other; or

2-20                       (B)  the prohibition against remarriage is waived

2-21     as provided by Section 6.802.

2-22           (d)  The county clerk may not refuse  to issue a license to

2-23     an applicant on the ground that the applicant checked "false" in

2-24     response to the statement "I am not presently delinquent in the

2-25     payment of court-ordered child support."

2-26           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

2-27           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-28     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-29     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-30     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-31     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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