S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3086
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 27, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  SALAZAR, BAILEY, BENJAMIN, BIAGGI, BOYLE, COMRIE,
   HOYLMAN, JACKSON, KAPLAN, KRUEGER, MAY, MAYER, MYRIE,  RAMOS,  RIVERA,
   SEPULVEDA  --  read  twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be
   committed to the Committee on Judiciary
 
 AN ACT to amend the domestic relations law, in  relation  to  increasing
   the  age  of  consent for purposes of marriage to the age of eighteen;
   and to repeal certain provisions of such law relating thereto
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section 15-a of the domestic relations law, as amended by
 chapter 35 of the laws of 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   § 15-a. Marriages of minors under [seventeen] EIGHTEEN years  of  age.
 Any marriage in which either party is under the age of [seventeen] EIGH-
 TEEN  years is hereby prohibited. Any town or city clerk who shall know-
 ingly issue a marriage license to any persons, one or both of whom shall
 be at the time of their contemplated marriage actually under the age  of
 [seventeen]  EIGHTEEN  years,  shall  be  guilty of a misdemeanor and on
 conviction thereof shall be fined in the sum of one hundred dollars.
   § 2. Section 13-b of the domestic relations law, as amended by chapter
 35 of the laws of 2017, is amended to read as follows:
   § 13-b. Time within which marriage may be solemnized. A marriage shall
 not be solemnized within twenty-four hours after  the  issuance  of  the
 marriage  license, unless authorized by an order of a court of record as
 hereinafter provided, nor shall it be solemnized after sixty  days  from
 the  date  of  the  issuance  of  the marriage license unless authorized
 pursuant to section three hundred fifty-four-d  of  the  executive  law.
 Every  license  to  marry  hereafter  issued by a town or city clerk, in
 addition to other requirements specified by this chapter, must contain a
 statement of the day and the hour the license is issued and  the  period
 during which the marriage may be solemnized. It shall be the duty of the
 clergyman  or  magistrate  performing  the  marriage ceremony, or if the
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD03014-01-1

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 marriage is solemnized by written contract, of the judge before whom the
 contract is acknowledged, to annex  to  or  endorse  upon  the  marriage
 license the date and hour the marriage is solemnized. A judge or justice
 of  the supreme court of this state or the county judge of the county in
 which either party to be married resides, or [if such party is at  least
 seventeen  years  of age,] the judge of the family court of such county,
 if it shall appear from an examination of  the  license  and  any  other
 proofs  submitted by the parties that one of the parties is in danger of
 imminent death, or by reason of other emergency public interest will  be
 promoted  thereby,  or  that  such delay will work irreparable injury or
 great hardship upon the contracting parties, or one of them, may,  [upon
 making  written  affirmative findings under subdivision three of section
 fifteen of this article,] make an order authorizing the immediate solem-
 nization of the marriage and upon filing such order with  the  clergyman
 or magistrate performing the marriage ceremony, or if the marriage is to
 be  solemnized  by  written  contract,  with  the  judge before whom the
 contract is acknowledged, such clergyman  or  magistrate  may  solemnize
 such  marriage,  or  such judge may take such acknowledgment as the case
 may be, without waiting for such three day period and  twenty-four  hour
 period  to  elapse.  The  clergyman,  magistrate or judge must file such
 order with the town or city clerk who issued  the  license  within  five
 days  after  the  marriage  is  solemnized. Such town or city clerk must
 record and index the order in the book required to be kept by him or her
 for recording affidavits, statements, consents and licenses, and when so
 recorded the order shall become a public record  and  available  in  any
 prosecution  under this section. A person who shall solemnize a marriage
 in violation of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor  and  upon
 conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of fifty dollars for each
 offense,  and  in  addition  thereto,  his  or  her right to solemnize a
 marriage shall be suspended for ninety days.
   § 3. Section 25 of the domestic relations law is amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   §  25.  License,  when  to be obtained. The provisions of this article
 pertaining to the granting of the licenses  before  a  marriage  can  be
 lawfully  celebrated  apply  to  all  persons  who  assume  the marriage
 relation in accordance with subdivision four of section eleven  of  this
 chapter.  Nothing in this article contained shall be construed to render
 void by reason of a failure to procure a marriage license  any  marriage
 solemnized  between persons of full age [nor to render void any marriage
 between minors or with a minor under the legal age of consent where  the
 consent  of parent or guardian has been given and such marriage shall be
 for such cause voidable only as to minors or a minor upon  complaint  of
 such minors or minor or of the parent or guardian thereof].
   §  4.  Subdivision  1  of  section 7 of the domestic relations law, as
 amended by chapter 313 of the laws  of  1962,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   1.  Is  under  the  age  of  legal  consent, which is eighteen years[,
 provided that such nonage shall not of  itself  constitute  an  absolute
 right  to the annulment of such marriage, but such annulment shall be in
 the discretion of the court which shall take into consideration all  the
 facts and circumstances surrounding such marriage];
   §  5.  Subdivision  3  of  section 15 of the domestic relations law is
 REPEALED.
   § 6. Paragraph c of subdivision 1 of  section  11-a  of  the  domestic
 relations law is REPEALED.
   § 7. Section 84 of the domestic relations law is REPEALED.

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   §  8.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
 have become a law and shall apply to licenses issued on and  after  such
 effective  date  and to marriages that have not been solemnized prior to
 such effective date.