Bill banning marriages under age 16 passes in West Virginia
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A child marriage bill is heading to the West Virginia governor's desk after lawmakers agreed to let 16- and 17-year-olds get married with restrictions.
The House of Delegates passed the bill 83-9 without debate Saturday, a day after the Senate easily endorsed it after making changes to an earlier House version. Republican Gov. Jim Justice hasn't publicly indicated whether he'll sign it.
Currently, children can marry as young as 16 in West Virginia with parental consent, and anyone younger than that regardless of age can get married with a judge’s waiver.
The bill passed Saturday would remove the possibility that anyone younger than 16 could marry. Those ages 16 and 17 would have to obtain parental consent and they couldn’t marry someone more than four years older than them. Existing legal marriages, including those done in other states, would be unaffected.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/bill-banning-marriages-under-age-16-passes-in-west-virginia/ar-AA18vDM1
Matt Gaetz will have to try elsewhere.
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