harrisonsdream
05-12-2007, 04:06 PM
Marriage license bill OK'd
The Senate plan would double fee unless couples attend classes
By POLLY ROSS HUGHES
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau
MATRIMONY 101
The marriage classes would stress anger control and how to resolve disputes without a fight, says bill author Rep. Warren Chisum.
• Language: They'd teach men the language of women
• Attention: help women understand that men have short attention spans
• Respect: would teach each member of the couple to respect each other's space.
AUSTIN — Legislation to double marriage license fees to $60 unless couples undergo prenuptial counseling flew through the Texas Senate Friday with unanimous approval.
Critics in the lower chamber derided House Bill 2685 as a marriage tax, a punishment for falling in love and even an intrusion into the bedrooms of ordinary Texans, but the Senate adopted the measure with little explanation and no debate.
And, while the House stripped the bill of the marriage license fee hike, leaving it at the current $30, the Senate adopted the increased rate for those who refuse to take a pre-marriage class. Couples who take the class would get a free marriage license.
Among several pushed by the Texas Conservative Coalition this spring to encourage healthier marriages, the bill might be the only one to survive, said Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, its author.
It now returns to the House, where members can concur with the Senate version or send the bill to a conference committee.
"Maybe they'll be asleep and won't catch it," Chisum joked, referring to those who gutted his bill in April by refusing to allow the fee hike.
"I think the House will concur with the Senate," he added. Chisum's bill, sponsored by Sen. Craig Estes, R-Wichita Falls in the Senate, takes a carrot-and-stick approach. If couples take an approved eight-hour marriage course, they pay no fee. If not, they pay double.
Such an approach caused consternation in the House among Republicans and Democrats during debate last month, with critics comparing the counseling approach to the "nanny" state.
"That could be a fight," predicted Rep. Gary Elkins, R-Houston. "People want to encourage getting married, not make more money on fees for the city or county courthouse or whatever. I just don't think it's needed."
Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, said Chisum is taking a risk that the House will kill a negotiated bill between the House and Senate if it contains the marriage fee hike.
"It's bad law," he said. "It's the first time I've ever seen someone get charged more for not going to some kind of class. It's a punishment without a crime being committed. Clearly it becomes a marriage tax. If you don't want to do that, you pay more."
The Senate also passed a companion marriage bill that would allow the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to free up $10 million from a welfare grant to pay for prenuptial classes for low-income Texans.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
encouraging learning how to communicate and fight without violence is a brillant idea!!
The Senate plan would double fee unless couples attend classes
By POLLY ROSS HUGHES
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau
MATRIMONY 101
The marriage classes would stress anger control and how to resolve disputes without a fight, says bill author Rep. Warren Chisum.
• Language: They'd teach men the language of women
• Attention: help women understand that men have short attention spans
• Respect: would teach each member of the couple to respect each other's space.
AUSTIN — Legislation to double marriage license fees to $60 unless couples undergo prenuptial counseling flew through the Texas Senate Friday with unanimous approval.
Critics in the lower chamber derided House Bill 2685 as a marriage tax, a punishment for falling in love and even an intrusion into the bedrooms of ordinary Texans, but the Senate adopted the measure with little explanation and no debate.
And, while the House stripped the bill of the marriage license fee hike, leaving it at the current $30, the Senate adopted the increased rate for those who refuse to take a pre-marriage class. Couples who take the class would get a free marriage license.
Among several pushed by the Texas Conservative Coalition this spring to encourage healthier marriages, the bill might be the only one to survive, said Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, its author.
It now returns to the House, where members can concur with the Senate version or send the bill to a conference committee.
"Maybe they'll be asleep and won't catch it," Chisum joked, referring to those who gutted his bill in April by refusing to allow the fee hike.
"I think the House will concur with the Senate," he added. Chisum's bill, sponsored by Sen. Craig Estes, R-Wichita Falls in the Senate, takes a carrot-and-stick approach. If couples take an approved eight-hour marriage course, they pay no fee. If not, they pay double.
Such an approach caused consternation in the House among Republicans and Democrats during debate last month, with critics comparing the counseling approach to the "nanny" state.
"That could be a fight," predicted Rep. Gary Elkins, R-Houston. "People want to encourage getting married, not make more money on fees for the city or county courthouse or whatever. I just don't think it's needed."
Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, said Chisum is taking a risk that the House will kill a negotiated bill between the House and Senate if it contains the marriage fee hike.
"It's bad law," he said. "It's the first time I've ever seen someone get charged more for not going to some kind of class. It's a punishment without a crime being committed. Clearly it becomes a marriage tax. If you don't want to do that, you pay more."
The Senate also passed a companion marriage bill that would allow the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to free up $10 million from a welfare grant to pay for prenuptial classes for low-income Texans.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
encouraging learning how to communicate and fight without violence is a brillant idea!!