1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to marriage; providing for a reduced marriage 
  1.3             license fee for couples who obtain premarital 
  1.4             counseling; amending Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 
  1.5             517.08, subdivisions 1b and 1c. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 517.08, 
  1.8   subdivision 1b, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 1b.  [TERM OF LICENSE; FEE; COUNSELING.] (a) The 
  1.10  court administrator shall examine upon oath the party applying 
  1.11  for a license relative to the legality of the contemplated 
  1.12  marriage.  If at the expiration of a five-day period, on being 
  1.13  satisfied that there is no legal impediment to it, the court 
  1.14  administrator shall issue the license, containing the full names 
  1.15  of the parties before and after marriage, and county and state 
  1.16  of residence, with the district court seal attached, and make a 
  1.17  record of the date of issuance.  The license shall be valid for 
  1.18  a period of six months.  In case of emergency or extraordinary 
  1.19  circumstances, a judge of the district court of the county in 
  1.20  which the application is made, may authorize the license to be 
  1.21  issued at any time before the expiration of the five 
  1.22  days.  Except as provided in paragraph (b), the court 
  1.23  administrator shall collect from the applicant a fee of $70 for 
  1.24  administering the oath, issuing, recording, and filing all 
  1.25  papers required, and preparing and transmitting to the state 
  2.1   registrar of vital statistics the reports of marriage required 
  2.2   by this section.  If the license should not be used within the 
  2.3   period of six months due to illness or other extenuating 
  2.4   circumstances, it may be surrendered to the court administrator 
  2.5   for cancellation, and in that case a new license shall issue 
  2.6   upon request of the parties of the original license without 
  2.7   fee.  A court administrator who knowingly issues or signs a 
  2.8   marriage license in any manner other than as provided in this 
  2.9   section shall pay to the parties aggrieved an amount not to 
  2.10  exceed $1,000. 
  2.11     (b) The marriage license fee for parties who receive 
  2.12  premarital counseling is $15.  In order to qualify for the 
  2.13  reduced fee, the parties must submit an affidavit stating that 
  2.14  they have received premarital counseling from a licensed or 
  2.15  ordained minister of any religious denomination or a person 
  2.16  authorized to practice marriage and family therapy under section 
  2.17  148B.33.  The counseling must include a discussion of the 
  2.18  seriousness of marriage and of the desirability of seeking 
  2.19  marital counseling in times of marital difficulties. 
  2.20     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 517.08, 
  2.21  subdivision 1c, is amended to read: 
  2.22     Subd. 1c.  [DISPOSITION OF LICENSE FEE.] Of the marriage 
  2.23  license fee collected pursuant to subdivision 1b, the court 
  2.24  administrator shall pay $55 to the state treasurer to be 
  2.25  deposited as follows: 
  2.26     (1) $50 in the general fund; 
  2.27     (2) $3 in the special revenue fund to be appropriated to 
  2.28  the commissioner of children, families, and learning for 
  2.29  supervised visitation facilities under section 119A.37; and 
  2.30     (3) $2 in the special revenue fund to be appropriated to 
  2.31  the commissioner of health for developing and implementing the 
  2.32  MN ENABL program under section 145.9255. 
  2.33     The $15 fee for parties who receive premarital counseling 
  2.34  must be paid to the state treasurer to be deposited in the 
  2.35  general fund.