S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  9645

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                             March 24, 2016
                               ___________

Introduced by M. of A. BUCHWALD -- read once and referred to the Commit-
  tee on Judiciary

AN  ACT  to amend the domestic relations law, in relation to waiving the
  fee for marriage licenses for active duty members of the armed forces

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  Subdivision  3  of section 14-a of the domestic relations
law, as amended by chapter 297 of the laws of 1963, is amended  to  read
as follows:
  3. A. No fee shall be charged for any certificate when required by the
veterans  administration  or by the division of veterans' affairs of the
state of New York to be used  in  determining  the  eligibility  of  any
person  to  participate  in  the benefits made available by the veterans
administration or by the state of New York.
  B. A TOWN OR CITY MAY ELECT TO WAIVE THE FEE FOR  A  CERTIFICATE  WHEN
EITHER  OF  THE  PARTIES  MAKING  APPLICATION  FOR SUCH CERTIFICATE IS A
MEMBER OF THE ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES ON ACTIVE DUTY.
  S 2. Subdivision 3 of section 15 of the  domestic  relations  law,  as
amended  by  section 5 of part W-2 of chapter 62 of the laws of 2003, is
amended to read as follows:
  3. If it shall appear upon an application for a marriage license  that
either  party  is under the age of sixteen years, the town or city clerk
shall require, in addition to any consents provided for in this section,
the written approval and consent of a justice of the supreme court or of
a judge of the family court, having jurisdiction over the town  or  city
in which the application is made, to be attached to or endorsed upon the
application,  before  the  license  is  issued. The application for such
approval and consent shall be heard by the judge at chambers. All papers
and records pertaining to any such application shall be  sealed  by  him
and  withheld  from  inspection, except by order of a court of competent
jurisdiction. Before issuing any licenses herein provided for, the  town
or  city  clerk  shall be entitled to a fee of thirty dollars, which sum
shall be paid by the applicants before or at the  time  the  license  is
issued;  PROVIDED,  HOWEVER, THAT A TOWN OR CITY MAY ELECT TO WAIVE SUCH

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                           LBD14210-02-6

A. 9645                             2

FEE WHEN EITHER OF THE PARTIES APPLYING FOR SUCH LICENSE IS A MEMBER  OF
THE  ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED STATES ON ACTIVE DUTY.  Any town or city
clerk who shall issue a license to marry any persons one or both of whom
shall  not  be  at  the  time of the marriage under such license legally
competent to marry without first requiring the parties to such  marriage
to  make  such  affidavits  and  statements or who shall not require the
production of documentary proof of age or the procuring of the  approval
and  consents  provided  for  by this article, which shall show that the
parties authorized by said license to be married are  legally  competent
to  marry,  shall  be  guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction thereof
shall be fined in the sum of one hundred  dollars  for  each  and  every
offense.  On  or  before  the fifteenth day of each month, each town and
city clerk, except in the city of New York, shall transmit to the  state
commissioner  of health twenty-two dollars and fifty cents of the amount
received for each fee collected, which shall  be  paid  into  the  vital
records  management  account as provided by section ninety-seven-cccc of
the state finance law; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT NO FEE SHALL BE COLLECTED
ON BEHALF OF OR PAID TO THE COMMISSIONER OF HEALTH WHEN  EITHER  OF  THE
PARTIES APPLYING FOR SUCH LICENSE IS A MEMBER OF THE ARMED FORCES OF THE
UNITED  STATES  ON  ACTIVE  DUTY.    In any city the balance of all fees
collected for the issuing of a marriage license, or  for  solemnizing  a
marriage,  so  far  as collected for services rendered by any officer or
employee of such city, shall be paid monthly into the city treasury  and
may  by  ordinance  be credited to any fund therein designated, and said
ordinance, when duly enacted, shall have the force of law in such  city.
Notwithstanding  any  other provisions of this article, the clerk of any
city with the approval of the governing body  of  such  city  is  hereby
authorized  to designate, in writing filed in the city clerk's office, a
deputy clerk, if any, and/or other city  employees  in  such  office  to
receive  applications  for,  examine applications, investigate and issue
marriage licenses in the absence or inability of the clerk of said  city
to act, and said deputy and/or employees so designated are hereby vested
with all the powers and duties of said city clerk relative thereto. Such
deputy  and/or  employees  shall  perform said duties without additional
compensation.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.