Scott Wiener's Bills

← All bills

SB 30 · 2019-20

Removes sex and age limits on domestic partnerships

Official subject Domestic partnership.

Became law Chapter 135, Statutes of 2019

Plain-language summary

Removes the requirement that domestic partners be of the same sex or be over 62. Waives the $23 registration charge for all couples when one partner is 62 or older. The Secretary of State must offer forms at its office or website and explain partners' rights and how to end a partnership.

How these summaries are written

Official summary · Legislative Counsel's Digest

Describes the final version (Chaptered, July 30, 2019).

Read the official summary (7 paragraphs)

Existing law defines domestic partnership as two adults who have chosen to share one another’s lives in an intimate and committed relationship of mutual caring. Existing law specifies requirements for entering into a domestic partnership, including that the domestic partners be either of the same sex or of the opposite sex and over 62 years of age.

This bill would remove the requirement that persons be of the same sex or of the opposite sex and over 62 years of age in order to enter into a domestic partnership.

Existing law imposes a $23 charge on persons filing domestic partner registrations to fund the development and support of a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender curriculum for training workshops on domestic violence and for the support of a grant program to promote healthy nonviolent relationships in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. Existing law exempts from this charge persons of opposite sexes filing a domestic partnership registration when one or both of the persons meet the eligibility criteria for federal old-age insurance benefits.

This bill would expand the exemption from paying the charge to all persons filing a domestic partner registration when one or both of the domestic partners is 62 years of age or older.

Existing law requires the Secretary of State to prepare forms entitled “Declaration of Domestic Partnership” and “Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership” and to distribute those forms to each county clerk and make them available to the public at the office of the Secretary of State and each county clerk.

This bill would delete the requirement that the forms be available at the office of each county clerk and, instead, require that the Secretary of State make the forms available at the office of the Secretary of State or on the Secretary of State’s internet website. The bill would require the instructions to the “Declaration of Domestic Partnership” form and the internet website to include an explanation that registered domestic partners have the same rights, protections, and benefits, and are subject to the same responsibilities, obligations, and duties under law as are granted to and imposed upon spouses and an explanation of how to terminate a registered domestic partnership.

This bill would also make various technical and conforming changes.

Official title

An act to amend Sections 297, 297.1, 298, 298.5, 298.6, 298.7, and 299.2 of, and to repeal Section 299.3 of, the Family Code, relating to domestic partnership.

Timeline

  1. Dec. 3, 2018 Introduced
  2. April 25, 2019 Passed Senate 30 yes, 4 no
  3. July 1, 2019 Passed Assembly 60 yes, 0 no
  4. July 19, 2019 Enrolled and sent to the Governor
  5. July 30, 2019 Signed by the Governor
  6. July 30, 2019 Chaptered (became law)
Full official history (26 actions)
  1. Dec. 3, 2018 Introduced: Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
  2. Dec. 4, 2018 From printer. May be acted upon on or after January 3.
  3. Jan. 16, 2019 Referred to Com. on JUD.
  4. March 8, 2019 Set for hearing March 26.
  5. March 18, 2019 From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
  6. March 27, 2019 From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 8. Noes 0. Page 438.) (March 26).
  7. March 28, 2019 Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
  8. April 5, 2019 Set for hearing April 22.
  9. April 22, 2019 From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8.
  10. April 23, 2019 Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
  11. April 25, 2019 Passed Senate: Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 30. Noes 4. Page 817.) Ordered to the Assembly.
  12. April 25, 2019 In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
  13. May 9, 2019 Referred to Com. on JUD.
  14. May 22, 2019 From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
  15. June 4, 2019 From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (June 4).
  16. June 5, 2019 Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
  17. June 13, 2019 From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
  18. June 19, 2019 Coauthors revised.
  19. June 19, 2019 From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 12. Noes 0.) (June 19).
  20. June 20, 2019 Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
  21. July 1, 2019 Passed Assembly: Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 60. Noes 0. Page 2489.) Ordered to the Senate.
  22. July 1, 2019 In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.
  23. July 5, 2019 Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 29. Noes 0. Page 1954.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
  24. July 19, 2019 Enrolled and sent to the Governor: Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m.
  25. July 30, 2019 Signed by the Governor: Approved by the Governor.
  26. July 30, 2019 Chaptered (became law): Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 135, Statutes of 2019.