Domestic partnerships-rights and responsibilities.

WORKING DRAFT
2013
STATE OF
WYOMING
13LSO-0409

HOUSE BILL
NO.
HB0168

Domestic partnerships-rights and responsibilities.

Sponsored by:
Representative(s) Connolly, Byrd, Gingery, Greene, Petroff, Throne, Wallis and Zwonitzer, Dn. and Senator(s) Burns, Craft, Rothfuss and Von Flatern

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to domestic relations; establishing domestic partnerships and related rights and responsibilities; specifying limits on domestic partnerships; requiring
certificate
s; providing for the recognition of foreign domestic partnerships; establishing the presumed legitimacy of children of domestic partnerships; providing for dissolution of domestic partnerships; defining the applicability of other law; prohibiting multiple domestic partnerships; providing penalties; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of
Wyoming
:

Section 1.

W.S. 6
‑
4
‑
407 and 20
‑
8
‑
101 through 20
‑
8
‑
1
07
are created to read:

6
‑
4
‑
407.

Multiple
domestic partnerships
; penalties; defense.

(a)

A person who is a party to a domestic partnership, and who knows that the other party to the domestic partnership is alive, is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than five (5) years, a fine of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), or both, if he enters into another domestic partnership or marries.

(b)

It is a defense that the accused person reasonably believed that he was eligible to enter into a new domestic partnership.

CHAPTER 8
CREATION OF DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIPS

20
‑
8
‑
101.

Purposes; construction
.

W.S. 20
‑
8
‑
101 through 20
‑
8
‑
107
shall be liberally construed and applied to promote their underlying purposes, which are to provide adequate procedures for the licensing of
domestic partnership
s
and to provide a method for persons to obtain the rights, responsibilities, protections and legal benefits provided in
Wyoming law
for immediate family members. For purposes of Wyoming statutes,
administrative rule, policy, common law or any other source of civil or criminal law
,
the term
"
spouse
"
shall include a party to a domestic partnership contract
evidenced by a
certificate
issued pursuant to this chapter
.

20
‑
8
‑
102.

D
omestic partnership
a civil contract.

A domestic partnership is a civil contract between two (2) natural persons to which the consent of the parties capable of contracting is essential.

20
‑
8
‑
103
.

Minimum age; exception; parental consent
.

(a)

At the time of entering the domestic partnership the parties shall be at least
eighteen
(1
8
) years of age except as otherwise provided.

(b)

All domestic partnership
s

involving a person under
eighteen
(1
8
) years of age are prohibited and voidable, unless before
entering
the domestic partnership a
judge of a court of record in Wyoming approves the domestic partnership and authorizes the county clerk to issue a
certificate
therefor.

20
‑
8
‑
104
.

Certificate
; required
.

(a)

Before any
domestic partnership is
recognized
in this state,
a
domestic partnership

certificate
shall be obtained from a Wyoming county clerk.

Upon receipt of an application, the county clerk shall ascertain by the testimony of a competent witness and the applicant
s
, the names, the social security numbers of the parties who have valid social security numbers, residences and ages of the parties and whether there is any legal impediment to the parties entering into the domestic partnership contract according to the laws of the state of their residence. The clerk shall enter the facts ascertained in a book kept by him for that purpose, except for the social security numbers which shall be provided to the state office of vital records and not made a part of the county public record. He may issue a
certificate

recognizing the
domestic partnership contract and shall date the
certificate
on the date of issuance except as otherwise provided.

(b)

Unless there is an order to waive the requirements of this section by a judge of a court of record in the county pursuant to subsection (c) of this section, the clerk shall refuse to issue a
certificate
if:

(i)

Either of the parties is legally incompetent to enter into a domestic partnership contract accordi
ng to the law of this state;

(ii)

There is any legal impediment to the parties entering the domestic partnership contract; or

(ii
i
)

Either party is a minor and the consent of a parent or guardian has not been given.

(
c
)

If any county cle
rk refuses to issue a
certificate
for a
domestic partnership
, if the parties seeking the
domestic partnership
are under the age of
eighteen
(1
8
)
or in case of circumstances arising which would necessitate the waiver of any one (1) or more of the requirements
for obtaining a
domestic partnership
certificate
, an application to the district court may be filed.

If the judge finds that a
certificate
should be issued, or such circumstances exist that it is proper that
any one (1) or more of the requirements should be waived, the judge may order in writing the issuance of the
certificate
. Upon the order of the judge being filed with the county clerk, the county clerk shall issue the
certificate
at the time specified in the order. No fee or court costs shall be charged or taxed for the order
.

(
d
)

The original
certificate
issued pursuant to this section
or a certified copy of the
certificate
is admissible in all courts and places as presumptive evidence of the fact of the

domestic partnership
.

20
‑
8
‑
105
.

Foreign

domestic partnerships
.

All
domestic partnerships
which are valid by the laws of the jurisdiction in which they are entered are valid in this state.

20
‑
8
‑
106
.

Legitimacy of children presumed.

The legitimacy of all children conceived or born during a
certificate
d
domestic partnership
are rebuttably presumed pursuant to W.S. 14
‑
2
‑
504.

20
‑
8
‑
107
.

Dissolution; applicability of other law.

A
domestic partnership
may be dissolved pursuant to the procedures, standards and limitations established under chapter 2 of this title. When applying any section of chapter 2 of this title,
the parties referred to are
the parties to
domestic partnerships
.

Section 2.

W.S. 6
‑
4
‑
401(a) and (b) is amended to read:

6
‑
4
‑
401.

Bigamy; penalties; defense.

(a)

A person commits bigamy if, being married and knowing that his spouse is alive, he marries again
or enters into a
domestic partnership
.

(b)

It is a defense that the accused person reasonably believed that he was eligible to remarry
or enter into a
domestic partnership
.

Section 3.

This act is effective July 1, 2013.

(END)

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HB0168