Introduced Version
Senate Bill 252 History
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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
Senate Bill No. 252
(By Senators Harrison, Kessler and McCabe)
____________
[Introduced January 24, 2006; referred to the Committee
on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance.]
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A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated §59-1-10a
, relating
to establishing a marriage license discount if the
applicants show proof of a certificate of completion of an
approved premarital counseling course.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated §59-1-10a
, to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 1. FEES AND ALLOWANCES.
§59-1-10a. Marriage license discount.
(a) A county shall discount a marriage license fee under
section ten of this article if the couple to be married has
completed, within one year before the date of the application for
the license, a premarital counseling course that addresses the following subjects and meets the specified time requirement:
(1) Conflict management;
(2) Communication skills;
(3) Financial responsibilities;
(4) Children and parenting responsibilities; and
(5) Consists of at least four hours of instruction.
(b) A premarital counseling course may be conducted by a
clinical professional counselor licensed in the state or any
person listed on the registry to perform marriages in the
Secretary of State's office.
(c) A premarital counseling course provider shall provide to
each couple who completes the course a certificate of completion
that specifies:
(1) The names of the couple;
(2) The name of the provider; and
(3) The date of completion of the course.
(d) To receive a discounted marriage license fee under this
section an applicant for a license must verify completion of a
premarital counseling course by presenting to the clerk of the
county commission a valid certificate of course completion issued
in accordance with subsection (c) of this section.
(e) The amount of the discount is twenty percent of the
marriage license fee. The discount shall be taken to offset the
portion of fees not yet dedicated in section ten, article one, chapter fifty-nine of this code from the regular marriage license
fee.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to establish a marriage
license discount for applicants who complete an approved
premarital counseling course.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.