| 1 | 1 | | H.B. No. 907 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | AN ACT |
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| 5 | 5 | | relating to persons authorized to conduct a marriage ceremony. |
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| 6 | 6 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 7 | 7 | | SECTION 1. Sections 2.202(a) and (b), Family Code, are |
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| 8 | 8 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 9 | 9 | | (a) The following persons are authorized to conduct a |
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| 10 | 10 | | marriage ceremony: |
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| 11 | 11 | | (1) a licensed or ordained Christian minister or |
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| 12 | 12 | | priest; |
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| 13 | 13 | | (2) a Jewish rabbi; |
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| 14 | 14 | | (3) a person who is an officer of a religious |
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| 15 | 15 | | organization and who is authorized by the organization to conduct a |
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| 16 | 16 | | marriage ceremony; and |
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| 17 | 17 | | (4) a current, former, or retired federal judge or |
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| 18 | 18 | | state judge [justice of the supreme court, judge of the court of |
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| 19 | 19 | | criminal appeals, justice of the courts of appeals, judge of the |
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| 20 | 20 | | district, county, and probate courts, judge of the county courts at |
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| 21 | 21 | | law, judge of the courts of domestic relations, judge of the |
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| 22 | 22 | | juvenile courts, retired justice or judge of those courts, justice |
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| 23 | 23 | | of the peace, retired justice of the peace, judge of a municipal |
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| 24 | 24 | | court, retired judge of a municipal court, associate judge of a |
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| 25 | 25 | | statutory probate court, retired associate judge of a statutory |
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| 26 | 26 | | probate court, associate judge of a county court at law, retired |
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| 27 | 27 | | associate judge of a county court at law, or judge or magistrate of |
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| 28 | 28 | | a federal court of this state; and |
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| 29 | 29 | | [(5) a retired judge or magistrate of a federal court |
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| 30 | 30 | | of this state]. |
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| 31 | 31 | | (b) For the purposes of Subsection (a)(4), "federal judge" |
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| 32 | 32 | | and "state judge" have the meanings assigned by Section 25.025, Tax |
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| 33 | 33 | | Code [a retired judge or justice is a former judge or justice who is |
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| 34 | 34 | | vested in the Judicial Retirement System of Texas Plan One or the |
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| 35 | 35 | | Judicial Retirement System of Texas Plan Two or who has an aggregate |
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| 36 | 36 | | of at least 12 years of service as judge or justice of any type |
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| 37 | 37 | | listed in Subsection (a)(4)]. |
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| 38 | 38 | | SECTION 2. Section 2.202(b-1), Family Code, is repealed. |
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| 39 | 39 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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| 40 | 40 | | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
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| 41 | 41 | | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
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| 42 | 42 | | I certify that H.B. No. 907 was passed by the House on April |
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| 43 | 43 | | 28, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 136, Nays 8, 2 present, not |
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| 44 | 44 | | voting. |
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| 45 | 45 | | ______________________________ |
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| 46 | 46 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
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| 47 | 47 | | I certify that H.B. No. 907 was passed by the Senate on May |
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| 48 | 48 | | 17, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. |
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| 49 | 49 | | ______________________________ |
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| 50 | 50 | | Secretary of the Senate |
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| 51 | 51 | | APPROVED: _____________________ |
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| 52 | 52 | | Date |
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| 53 | 53 | | _____________________ |
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| 54 | 54 | | Governor |
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