Enrolled HB 62: Relating to the Legislative Ethics Act; relating to solemnization of marriage; and relating to consent to marriage.
00Enrolled HB 62 01 Relating to the Legislative Ethics Act; relating to solemnization of marriage; and relating to 02 consent to marriage. 03 _______________ 04 * Section 1. AS 24.60.030(a) is amended to read: 05 (a) A legislator or legislative employee may not 06 (1) solicit, agree to accept, or accept a benefit other than official 07 compensation for the performance of public duties; this paragraph may not be 08 construed to prohibit 09 (A) lawful solicitation for and acceptance of campaign 10 contributions; 11 (B) [,] solicitation or acceptance of contributions for a charity 12 event, as defined in AS 24.60.080(a)(2)(B); 13 (C) [, OR] the acceptance of a gift under AS 24.60.075 or 14 24.60.080; or 15 (D) a legislator from accepting reasonable, ordinary, and
01 customary travel and hospitality primarily for the purpose of solemnizing 02 a marriage under AS 25.05.261(a)(4); 03 (2) use public funds, facilities, equipment, services, or another 04 government asset or resource for a nonlegislative purpose, for involvement in or 05 support of or opposition to partisan political activity, or for the private benefit of the 06 legislator, legislative employee, or another person; this paragraph does not prohibit 07 (A) limited use of state property and resources for personal 08 purposes if the use does not interfere with the performance of public duties and 09 either the cost or value related to the use is nominal or the legislator or 10 legislative employee reimburses the state for the cost of the use; 11 (B) the use of mailing lists, computer data, or other information 12 lawfully obtained from a government agency and available to the general 13 public for nonlegislative purposes; 14 (C) the legislative council, notwithstanding AS 24.05.190, from 15 designating a public facility for use by legislators and legislative employees for 16 health or fitness purposes; when the council designates a facility to be used by 17 legislators and legislative employees for health or fitness purposes, it shall 18 adopt guidelines governing access to and use of the facility; the guidelines may 19 establish times in which use of the facility is limited to specific groups; 20 (D) a legislator from using the legislator's private office in the 21 capital city during a legislative session, and for the 10 days immediately before 22 and the 10 days immediately after a legislative session, for nonlegislative 23 purposes if the use does not interfere with the performance of public duties and 24 if there is no cost to the state for the use of the space and equipment, other than 25 utility costs and minimal wear and tear, or the legislator promptly reimburses 26 the state for the cost; an office is considered a legislator's private office under 27 this subparagraph if it is the primary space in the capital city reserved for use 28 by the legislator, whether or not it is shared with others; 29 (E) a legislator from use of legislative employees to prepare 30 and send out seasonal greeting cards; 31 (F) a legislator from using state resources to transport
01 computers or other office equipment owned by the legislator but primarily used 02 for a state function; 03 (G) use by a legislator of photographs of that legislator; 04 (H) reasonable use of the Internet by a legislator or a legislative 05 employee except if the use is for election campaign purposes; 06 (I) a legislator or legislative employee from soliciting, 07 accepting, or receiving a gift on behalf of a recognized, nonpolitical charitable 08 organization in a state facility; 09 (J) a legislator from sending any communication in the form of 10 a newsletter to the legislator's constituents, except a communication expressly 11 advocating the election or defeat of a candidate or a newsletter or material in a 12 newsletter that is clearly only for the private benefit of a legislator or a 13 legislative employee; or 14 (K) full participation in a charity event approved in advance by 15 the Alaska Legislative Council; 16 (3) knowingly seek, accept, use, allocate, grant, or award public funds 17 for a purpose other than that approved by law, or make a false statement in connection 18 with a claim, request, or application for compensation, reimbursement, or travel 19 allowances from public funds; 20 (4) require a legislative employee to perform services for the private 21 benefit of the legislator or employee at any time, or allow a legislative employee to 22 perform services for the private benefit of a legislator or employee on government 23 time; it is not a violation of this paragraph if the services were performed in an 24 unusual or infrequent situation and the person's services were reasonably necessary to 25 permit the legislator or legislative employee to perform official duties; 26 (5) use or authorize the use of state funds, facilities, equipment, 27 services, or another government asset or resource for the purpose of political fund 28 raising or campaigning; this paragraph does not prohibit 29 (A) limited use of state property and resources for personal 30 purposes if the use does not interfere with the performance of public duties and 31 either the cost or value related to the use is nominal or the legislator or
01 legislative employee reimburses the state for the cost of the use; 02 (B) the use of mailing lists, computer data, or other information 03 lawfully obtained from a government agency and available to the general 04 public for nonlegislative purposes; 05 (C) storing or maintaining, consistent with (b) of this section, 06 election campaign records in a legislator's office; 07 (D) a legislator from using the legislator's private office in the 08 capital city during a legislative session, and for the 10 days immediately before 09 and the 10 days immediately after a legislative session, for nonlegislative 10 purposes if the use does not interfere with the performance of public duties and 11 if there is no cost to the state for the use of the space and equipment, other than 12 utility costs and minimal wear and tear, or the legislator promptly reimburses 13 the state for the cost; an office is considered a legislator's private office under 14 this subparagraph if it is the primary space in the capital city reserved for use 15 by the legislator, whether or not it is shared with others; or 16 (E) use by a legislator of photographs of that legislator. 17 * Sec. 2. AS 25.05.171(b) is amended to read: 18 (b) A superior court judge may grant permission for a person who has reached 19 the age of 16 [14] but is under the age of 18 to marry and may order the licensing 20 officer to issue the license if the judge finds, following a hearing at which the parents 21 and minor are given the opportunity to appear and be heard, that the marriage is in the 22 best interest of the minor, that the other party to the marriage is not more than 23 three years older, and that either 24 (1) the parents have given their consent; or 25 (2) the parents are 26 (A) arbitrarily and capriciously withholding consent; 27 (B) absent or otherwise unaccountable; 28 (C) in disagreement among themselves on the question; or 29 (D) unfit to decide the matter. 30 * Sec. 3. AS 25.05.301 is amended to read: 31 Sec. 25.05.301. Form of solemnization. In the solemnization of marriage, no
01 particular form is required except that the parties shall assent or declare in the 02 presence of each other and the person solemnizing the marriage and in the presence of 03 at least one [TWO] competent witness [WITNESSES] that they take each other to be 04 husband and wife. A person is competent to solemnize or witness a marriage if the 05 person is [COMPETENT WITNESS FOR THIS PURPOSE IS A PERSON] of sound 06 mind capable of understanding the seriousness of the ceremony. At the time of the 07 ceremony, the person solemnizing the marriage shall complete the certification on the 08 original marriage certificate. The person solemnizing the marriage and the [TWO] 09 attending witness [WITNESSES] shall sign the original marriage certificate and the 10 necessary copies. The witness must be 18 years of age or older. The witness shall 11 communicate with both parties before or after the ceremony, but before signing 12 the original marriage certificate and the necessary copies, and confirm that each 13 party intends to marry the other party. The marriage certificate must state that 14 the person solemnizing the marriage and the witness have confirmed with both 15 parties that they are entering the marriage intentionally and in the exercise of 16 each party's own free will. 17 * Sec. 4. AS 25.05.321 is amended to read: 18 Sec. 25.05.321. Certificates. The person solemnizing the marriage shall, on 19 the forms provided by the bureau, complete two short-form certificates [,] and, after 20 that person and the witness [TWO WITNESSES] have signed them, give one to each 21 of the parties to the marriage. A church or congregation may design and furnish its 22 own form for this purpose, containing as a minimum the items contained in the form 23 furnished by the bureau. The original marriage certificate shall be filed as required by 24 AS 18.50 (Vital Statistics Act) and regulations adopted under it. The person 25 solemnizing the marriage shall complete the certificate as required and submit it to the 26 local registrar within seven days after [OF] the date the marriage is solemnized. 27 * Sec. 5. AS 25.05.321 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 28 (b) The person solemnizing the marriage and the witness shall provide their 29 printed names, mailing and electronic mail addresses, and telephone numbers on the 30 forms provided by the bureau or by a church or congregation. 31 * Sec. 6. AS 25.05.361 is amended to read:
01 Sec. 25.05.361. Unlawful solemnization of marriage. A person who 02 solemnizes a marriage without first receiving a proper marriage license from the 03 parties as provided in this chapter or without the parties declaring to take each other as 04 husband and wife, or without requiring the presence of one [TWO] competent witness 05 [WITNESSES]; or who solemnizes a marriage involving a person under the legal age 06 of marriage without the consent of (1) the licensing official when authorized, or (2) the 07 parents or guardian of the underaged person, being stated in the license; or who 08 solemnizes a marriage knowing of any legal impediment thereto, or who solemnizes a 09 marriage after the expiration of the license, or who falsely certifies to the date of a 10 marriage solemnized by that person is guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction is 11 punishable by imprisonment for not more than six months, or by a fine of not more 12 than $500, or by both. 13 * Sec. 7. AS 25.20.020 is amended to read: 14 Sec. 25.20.020. Arrival at majority upon marriage. A person arrives at the 15 age of majority upon being married according to law [, UNLESS THE PERSON IS 16 UNDER THE MARRIAGEABLE AGE OF CONSENT AS DEFINED IN 17 AS 25.05.171(a), IN WHICH CASE THE PERSON REACHES MAJORITY UPON 18 REACHING THE MARRIAGEABLE AGE OF CONSENT]. 19 * Sec. 8. AS 25.05.041(a)(3), 25.05.041(a)(5), and 25.05.171(a) are repealed.