By Goodman, Wohlgemuth, Telford, H.B. No. 2442
76R11979 JMM-F
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the administration and funding of a premarital
1-3 education handbook and certain marital education courses.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 2.009(c), Family Code, is amended to
1-6 conform to Section 1, Chapter 698, Acts of the 75th Legislature,
1-7 Regular Session, 1997, and amended to read as follows:
1-8 (c) On the proper execution of the application, the clerk
1-9 shall:
1-10 (1) prepare the license;
1-11 (2) enter on [record on the reverse side of] the
1-12 license the names of the licensees, the date that the license is
1-13 issued, and, if applicable, the name of the person appointed to act
1-14 as proxy for an absent applicant, if any;
1-15 (3) record the time at which the license was issued;
1-16 [and]
1-17 (4) distribute to each applicant printed materials
1-18 about acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) and human
1-19 immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and note on the license that the
1-20 distribution was made; and
1-21 (5) distribute to each applicant a premarital
1-22 education handbook provided by the attorney general under Section
1-23 2.014.
1-24 SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 2, Family Code, is amended
1-25 by adding Sections 2.013 and 2.014 to read as follows:
2-1 Sec. 2.013. PREMARITAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS; WAIVER. (a)
2-2 Each person applying for a marriage license is encouraged to attend
2-3 a premarital education course of at least four hours during the
2-4 year preceding the date of the application for the license.
2-5 (b) The course under Subsection (a) may be completed by:
2-6 (1) personal instruction;
2-7 (2) videotape instruction;
2-8 (3) instruction through an electronic medium; or
2-9 (4) a combination of these methods.
2-10 (c) A premarital education course should include instruction
2-11 in:
2-12 (1) conflict management;
2-13 (2) communication skills;
2-14 (3) children and parenting responsibilities; and
2-15 (4) financial responsibilities.
2-16 (d) A course under this section should be offered by:
2-17 (1) a mental health professional who holds at least a
2-18 master's degree with a background in family therapy; or
2-19 (2) a religious practitioner who performs counseling
2-20 consistent with the laws of this state or another person designated
2-21 as a program counselor by a church or religious institution.
2-22 (e) Each county clerk may maintain a roster of area course
2-23 providers who meet the requirements of this section, including
2-24 providers who offer the course on a sliding scale or without
2-25 charge. The clerk may provide a copy of the roster on request to
2-26 an applicant for a marriage license.
2-27 (f) An applicant for a marriage license who takes a course
3-1 under this section shall pay any fee charged for the course.
3-2 (g) A person who seeks to be listed as a course provider on
3-3 a list maintained under Subsection (e) shall notify the county
3-4 clerk of the county in which the person intends to offer a course.
3-5 The notification must include the applicant's professional license
3-6 number or evidence of the person's position or affiliation with a
3-7 church or religious institution, as appropriate, and an address at
3-8 which the course provider may be contacted.
3-9 Sec. 2.014. FAMILY TRUST FUND. (a) The family trust fund
3-10 is created as a trust fund with the state comptroller and shall be
3-11 administered by the attorney general for the beneficiaries of the
3-12 fund.
3-13 (b) Money in the trust fund is derived from depositing $3 of
3-14 each marriage license fee as authorized under Section 118.018(c),
3-15 Local Government Code, and may be used only for:
3-16 (1) the development and distribution of a premarital
3-17 education handbook;
3-18 (2) grants to institutions of higher education having
3-19 academic departments that are capable of research on marriage and
3-20 divorce that will assist in determining programs, courses, and
3-21 policies to help strengthen families and assist children whose
3-22 parents are divorcing;
3-23 (3) support for counties to create or administer free
3-24 or low-cost premarital education courses;
3-25 (4) programs intended to reduce the amount of
3-26 delinquent child support; and
3-27 (5) other programs the attorney general determines
4-1 will assist families in this state.
4-2 (c) The premarital education handbook under Subsection
4-3 (b)(1) shall be distributed to each applicant for a marriage
4-4 license as provided by Section 2.009(c)(5) and shall contain
4-5 information on:
4-6 (1) conflict management;
4-7 (2) communication skills;
4-8 (3) children and parenting responsibilities; and
4-9 (4) financial responsibilities.
4-10 (d) The attorney general shall appoint an advisory committee
4-11 to assist in the development of the premarital education handbook.
4-12 The advisory committee shall consist of nine members, including at
4-13 least three members who are eligible under Section 2.013(d) to
4-14 provide a premarital education course. A member of the advisory
4-15 committee is not entitled to reimbursement of the member's
4-16 expenses.
4-17 SECTION 3. Section 118.011(a), Local Government Code, is
4-18 amended to read as follows:
4-19 (a) A county clerk shall collect the following fees for
4-20 services rendered to any person:
4-21 (1) Personal Property Records Filing (Sec. 118.012)
4-22 ......................................... $ 2.00
4-23 (2) Real Property Records Filing (Sec. 118.013):
4-24 for the first page ........................ $ 3.00
4-25 for each additional page or part of a page
4-26 on which there are visible marks of any
4-27 kind .................................... $ 2.00
5-1 for all or part of each 8 1/2" X 14" attachment or
5-2 rider ................................... $ 2.00
5-3 for each name in excess of five names that has to
5-4 be indexed in all records in which the document
5-5 must be indexed ......................... $ 0.25
5-6 (3) Certified Papers (Sec. 118.014):
5-7 for the clerk's certificate ............... $ 5.00
5-8 plus a fee for each page or part of a
5-9 page .................................... $ 1.00
5-10 (4) Noncertified Papers (Sec. 118.0145):
5-11 for each page or part of a page ........... $ 1.00
5-12 (5) Birth or Death Certificate (Sec. 118.015)
5-13 ........................ same as state registrar
5-14 (6) Bond Approval (Sec. 118.016) .............. $ 3.00
5-15 (7) Marriage License (Sec. 118.018)
5-16 ................................ $30.00 [$25.00]
5-17 (8) Declaration of Informal Marriage (Sec. 118.019)
5-18 ......................................... $25.00
5-19 (9) Brand Registration (Sec. 118.020) ......... $ 5.00
5-20 (10) Oath Administration (Sec. 118.021) ....... $ 1.00
5-21 SECTION 4. Section 118.018, Local Government Code, is
5-22 amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
5-23 (c) A county clerk who collects a fee under this section
5-24 from a marriage license applicant shall remit $3 of that fee to the
5-25 comptroller for deposit in the family trust fund established under
5-26 Section 2.014, Family Code.
5-27 SECTION 5. (a) Section 1, Chapter 698, Acts of the 75th
6-1 Legislature, Regular Session, 1997, is repealed.
6-2 (b) To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails over
6-3 another Act of the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999,
6-4 relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
6-5 codes.
6-6 SECTION 6. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
6-7 (b) The change in law made by this Act applies to an
6-8 application for a marriage license filed on or after the effective
6-9 date of this Act. An application filed before the effective date
6-10 of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
6-11 application was filed, and the former law is continued in effect
6-12 for that purpose.
6-13 SECTION 7. The importance of this legislation and the
6-14 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-15 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-16 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-17 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.