S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6272
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              April 20, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen. HELMING -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Securi-
   ty and Military Affairs
 
 AN ACT to amend the domestic relations law and  the  executive  law,  in
   relation to allowing marriages within twenty-four hours of receiving a
   marriage license

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. 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] 1. EXCEPT
 AS PROVIDED IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION, 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  herein-
 after  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 state-
 ment 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  cler-
 gyman or magistrate performing the marriage ceremony, or if the 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  seven-
 teen  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 immi-
 nent death, or by reason of other  emergency  public  interest  will  be
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD10896-01-1

 S. 6272                             2
 
 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.
   2. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TWENTY-FOUR HOUR WAITING PERIOD  PRESCRIBED  IN
 SUBDIVISION  ONE OF THIS SECTION, ANY MILITARY PERSONNEL WHOSE SCHEDULED
 MILITARY DEPLOYMENT IS LESS THAN THIRTY DAYS AWAY MAY GET MARRIED WITHIN
 TWENTY-FOUR HOURS OF RECEIVING A MARRIAGE LICENSE.
   § 2. Section 354-d of the executive law, as added by  chapter  723  of
 the  laws  of 2005 and as renumbered by chapter 652 of the laws of 2007,
 is amended to read as follows:
   § 354-d. Time within which marriage may be solemnized; member  of  the
 armed  forces.  1.  Notwithstanding  section  thirteen-b of the domestic
 relations law, where either of the  parties  making  application  for  a
 marriage license, pursuant to section thirteen of the domestic relations
 law, is a member of the armed forces of the United States on active duty
 the  marriage  of the parties shall not be solemnized within twenty-four
 hours after the issuance of the marriage license, nor shall it be solem-
 nized after one hundred eighty days from the date of the issuance of the
 marriage license. Proof that the applicant is  a  member  of  the  armed
 forces  of  the  United States shall be furnished to the satisfaction of
 the official issuing the marriage license. Every license to marry issued
 pursuant to the provisions of this section shall state the day and  hour
 the  license  is  issued  and  shall contain a recital that it is issued
 pursuant to the provisions of this section.
   2. NOTWITHSTANDING THE TWENTY-FOUR HOUR WAITING PERIOD  PRESCRIBED  IN
 SUBDIVISION  ONE OF THIS SECTION, ANY MILITARY PERSONNEL WHOSE SCHEDULED
 MILITARY DEPLOYMENT IS LESS THAN THIRTY DAYS AWAY MAY GET MARRIED WITHIN
 TWENTY-FOUR HOURS OF RECEIVING A MARRIAGE LICENSE.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.