Alabama Senate passes bill to eliminate marriage licenses

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A bill just passed in the Alabama Senate to eliminate marriage licenses in that state. The new bill, sponsored by Republican Senator Greg Albritton, sets up a process under which probate judges accept affidavits from couples in place of licenses.

The requirement of a ceremony to solemnize the marriage would be eliminated.

Albritton has proposed similar bills the last couple of years, ever since the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in 2015, and some Alabama probate judges refused to issue licenses to same-sex couples.

The only thing making a marriage legal now in the state is an affidavit saying that the spouses are at least 18, or at least 16 and have parental consent, are not currently married and are not related by blood or adoption.

Corrie O'Connor