H. B. 3322
(By Delegate J. Miller)
[Introduced January 13, 2010; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]
A BILL to amend of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new article, designated §48-5B-1, §48-5B-2,
§48-5B-3, §48-5B-4, §48-5B-5, §48-5B-6 and §48-5B-7, all
relating to creating and issuing certificates recognizing the
termination of marriage.
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 article, designated §48-5B-1, §48-5B-2,
§48-5B-3, §48-5B-4, §48-5B-5, §48-5B-6 and §48-5B-7, all to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 5B. CERTIFICATE OF MARRIAGE TERMINATION.
§48-5B-1. Purpose.
The purpose of this article is to create a document proving
the termination of a marriage licensed in this state.
§48-5B-2. Issuance of certificate.
The clerk of the county commission shall issue a certificate
of marriage termination within thirty days upon receiving an
application meeting the requirements set forth in this article.
The clerk shall only grant a certificate of marriage termination
for marriage terminated by divorce, annulment or death of a spouse.
§48-5B-3. Availability of certificate.
(a) The clerk of the county commission for each county in the
state shall make available, and record on file if approved, an
application for a certificate recognizing the termination of a
marriage that was licensed by the clerk.
(b) Any person may apply for a certificate of marriage
termination to the clerk of the county commission where the license
was granted. The clerk may not deny any application meeting the
requirements of this article.
(c) Upon submission of a complete application, the clerk shall
issue a certificate to any resident of the United States:
Provided, That any application by a resident of another state, and
any information required as part of a complete application, shall
be notarized by a notary of the public in the state of the
applicant's residence.
§48-5B-4. Contents of application.
(a) All applications for a certificate of marriage termination
must include the full names of both female and male parties, their
social security account numbers, dates of birth, places of birth and residence addresses. The applicant's signature shall be a
testament that all information is accurate to the best of the
applicant's knowledge.
(b) Except for the full names of both parties, the
unavailability of information required under subsection (a) for any
reason does not invalidate the application: Provided, That the
applicant's signature shall be a testament that the applicant made
a good faith effort to obtain the information.
(c) Each application shall specify the nature of the marriage
termination and also include the following information:
(1) An application by divorce shall include a certified copy
of the final order of divorce;
(2) An application by annulment shall include a certified copy
of the final annulment order; and
(3) An application by death of spouse shall include a
certified copy of the spouses death certificate.
(d) Nothing in this article prevents both parties on a
marriage license from submitting a single application.
§48-5B-5. Validity of certificate; use of certificate; fee.
(a) A certificate of marriage termination shall serve as an
official document issued by the state and does not expire.
(b) If the clerk where the certificate is filed subsequently
determines the certificate to be inaccurate or obtained by fraud,
the clerk shall revoke the certificate and file a copy of the revocation with the certificate.
(c) A certificate of marriage termination may not be
substituted for a final order of divorce, final annulment order or
death certificate where such document is specifically required in
this code: Provided, That any subdivision or agency of this state
may promulgate rules allowing the acceptance of the certificate for
official purposes.
(d) The clerk may charge an application fee up to, but not
exceeding, the fee for issuing a marriage license.
§48-5B-6. Fraudulent obtainment; use.
Any person who fraudulently obtains or uses a certificate of
marriage termination may be held criminally or civilly liable, or
both, under the laws of this state.
§48-5B-7. Severability provision.
If any provision of this article or the application thereof to
any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not
affect other provisions or applications of this article which can
be given effect without the invalid provision or application and to
that end the provisions of this article are severable.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to allow for creation and
issuance of a certificate of marriage termination.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.