Full Text of SB1716 96th General Assembly
SB1716enr 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning civil law.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the | 5 | | Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act. | 6 | | Section 5. Purposes; rules of construction. This Act shall | 7 | | be liberally construed and applied to promote its underlying | 8 | | purposes, which are to provide adequate procedures for the | 9 | | certification and registration of a civil union and provide | 10 | | persons entering into a civil union with the obligations, | 11 | | responsibilities, protections, and benefits afforded or | 12 | | recognized by the law of Illinois to spouses. | 13 | | Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: | 14 | | "Certificate" means a document that certifies that the | 15 | | persons named on the certificate have established a civil union | 16 | | in this State in compliance with this Act. | 17 | | "Civil union" means a legal relationship between 2 persons, | 18 | | of either the same or opposite sex, established pursuant to | 19 | | this Act. | 20 | | "Department" means the Department of Public Health. | 21 | | "Officiant" means the person authorized to certify a civil | 22 | | union in accordance with Section 40. |
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| 1 | | "Party to a civil union" means a person who has established | 2 | | a civil union pursuant to this Act. "Party to a civil union" | 3 | | means, and shall be included in, any definition or use of the | 4 | | terms "spouse", "family", "immediate family", "dependent", | 5 | | "next of kin", and other terms that denote the spousal | 6 | | relationship, as those terms are used throughout the law. | 7 | | Section 15. Religious freedom. Nothing in this Act shall | 8 | | interfere with or regulate the religious practice of any | 9 | | religious body. Any religious body, Indian Nation or Tribe or | 10 | | Native Group is free to choose whether or not to solemnize or | 11 | | officiate a civil union. | 12 | | Section 20. Protections, obligations, and | 13 | | responsibilities. A party to a civil union is entitled to the | 14 | | same legal obligations, responsibilities, protections, and | 15 | | benefits as are afforded or recognized by the law of Illinois | 16 | | to spouses, whether they derive from statute, administrative | 17 | | rule, policy, common law, or any other source of civil or | 18 | | criminal law. | 19 | | Section 25. Prohibited civil unions. The following civil | 20 | | unions are prohibited: | 21 | | (1) a civil union entered into prior to both parties | 22 | | attaining 18 years of age; | 23 | | (2) a civil union entered into prior to the dissolution |
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| 1 | | of a marriage or civil union or substantially similar legal | 2 | | relationship of one of the parties; | 3 | | (3) a civil union between an ancestor and a descendent | 4 | | or between siblings whether the relationship is by the half | 5 | | or the whole blood or by adoption; | 6 | | (4) a civil union between an aunt or uncle and a niece | 7 | | or nephew, whether the relationship is by the half or the | 8 | | whole blood or by adoption; and | 9 | | (5) a civil union between first cousins. | 10 | | Section 30. Application, license, and certification. | 11 | | (a) The Director of Public Health shall prescribe the form | 12 | | for an application, license, and certificate for a civil union. | 13 | | (b) An application for a civil union shall include the | 14 | | following information: | 15 | | (1) name, sex, occupation, address, social security | 16 | | number, date and place of birth of each party to the civil | 17 | | union; | 18 | | (2) name and address of the parents or guardian of each | 19 | | party; | 20 | | (3) whether the parties are related to each other and, | 21 | | if so, their relationship; and | 22 | | (4) in the event either party was previously married or | 23 | | entered into a civil union or a substantially similar legal | 24 | | relationship, provide the name, date, place and the court | 25 | | in which the marriage or civil union or substantially |
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| 1 | | similar legal relationship was dissolved or declared | 2 | | invalid or the date and place of death of the former spouse | 3 | | or of the party to the civil union or substantially similar | 4 | | legal relationship. | 5 | | (c) When an application has been completed and signed by | 6 | | both parties, applicable fees have been paid, and both parties | 7 | | have appeared before the county clerk, the county clerk shall | 8 | | issue a license and a certificate of civil union upon being | 9 | | furnished satisfactory proof that the civil union is not | 10 | | prohibited. | 11 | | (d) A license becomes effective in the county where it was | 12 | | issued one day after the date of issuance, and expires 60 days | 13 | | after it becomes effective. | 14 | | (e) The certificate must be completed and returned to the | 15 | | county clerk that issued the license within 10 days of the | 16 | | civil union. | 17 | | (f) A copy of the completed certificate from the county | 18 | | clerk or the return provided to the Department of Public Health | 19 | | by a county clerk shall be presumptive evidence of the civil | 20 | | union in all courts. | 21 | | Section 35. Duties of the county clerk. | 22 | | (a) Before issuing a civil union license to a person who | 23 | | resides and intends to continue to reside in another state, the | 24 | | county clerk shall satisfy himself or herself by requiring | 25 | | affidavits or otherwise that the person is not prohibited from |
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| 1 | | entering into a civil union or substantially similar legal | 2 | | relationship by the laws of the jurisdiction where he or she | 3 | | resides. | 4 | | (b) Upon receipt of the certificate, the county clerk shall | 5 | | notify the Department of Public Health within 45 days. The | 6 | | county clerk shall provide the Department of Public Health with | 7 | | a return on a form furnished by the Department of Public Health | 8 | | and shall substantially consist of the following items: | 9 | | (1) a copy of the application signed and attested to by | 10 | | the applicants, except that in any county in which the | 11 | | information provided in a civil union application is | 12 | | entered into a computer, the county clerk may submit a | 13 | | computer copy of the information without the signatures and | 14 | | attestations of the applicants; | 15 | | (2) the license number; | 16 | | (3) a copy of the certificate; and | 17 | | (4) the date and location of the civil union. | 18 | | (c) Each month, the county clerk shall report to the | 19 | | Department of Public Health the total number of civil union | 20 | | applications, licenses, and certificates filed during the | 21 | | month. | 22 | | (d) Any official issuing a license with knowledge that the | 23 | | parties are thus prohibited from entering into a civil union | 24 | | shall be guilty of a petty offense. | 25 | | Section 40. Certification. A civil union may be certified: |
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| 1 | | by a judge of a court of record; by a retired judge of a court | 2 | | of record, unless the retired judge was removed from office by | 3 | | the Judicial Inquiry Board, except that a retired judge shall | 4 | | not receive any compensation from the State, a county, or any | 5 | | unit of local government in return for the solemnization of a | 6 | | civil union and there shall be no effect upon any pension | 7 | | benefits conferred by the Judges Retirement System of Illinois; | 8 | | by a judge of the Court of Claims; by a county clerk in | 9 | | counties having 2,000,000 or more inhabitants; by a public | 10 | | official whose powers include solemnization of marriages; or in | 11 | | accordance with the prescriptions of any religious | 12 | | denomination, Indian Nation or Tribe or Native Group, provided | 13 | | that when such prescriptions require an officiant, the | 14 | | officiant be in good standing with his or her religious | 15 | | denomination, Indian Nation or Tribe or Native Group. The | 16 | | person performing a civil union shall complete the certificate | 17 | | and forward it to the county clerk within 10 days after a civil | 18 | | union. | 19 | | Section 45. Dissolution; declaration of invalidity. Any | 20 | | person who enters into a civil union in Illinois consents to | 21 | | the jurisdiction of the courts of Illinois for the purpose of | 22 | | any action relating to a civil union even if one or both | 23 | | parties cease to reside in this State. A court shall enter a | 24 | | judgment of dissolution of a civil union if at the time the | 25 | | action is commenced it meets the grounds for dissolution set |
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| 1 | | forth in Section 401 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution | 2 | | of Marriage Act. The provisions of Sections 401 through 413 of | 3 | | the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act shall | 4 | | apply to a dissolution of a civil union. The provisions of | 5 | | Sections 301 through 306 of the Illinois Marriage and | 6 | | Dissolution of Marriage Act shall apply to the declaration of | 7 | | invalidity of a civil union. | 8 | | Section 50. Application of the Civil Practice Law. The | 9 | | provisions of the Civil Practice Law shall apply to all | 10 | | proceedings under this Act, except as otherwise provided in | 11 | | this Act. A proceeding for dissolution of a civil union or | 12 | | declaration of invalidity of a civil union shall be entitled | 13 | | "In re the Civil Union of ... and ...". The initial pleading in | 14 | | all proceedings under this Act shall be denominated a petition. | 15 | | A responsive pleading shall be denominated a response. All | 16 | | other pleadings under this Act shall be denominated as provided | 17 | | in the Civil Practice Law. | 18 | | Section 55. Venue. The proceedings shall be had in the | 19 | | county where the petitioner or respondent resides or where the | 20 | | parties' certificate of civil union was issued, except as | 21 | | otherwise provided herein, but process may be directed to any | 22 | | county in the State. Objection to venue is barred if not made | 23 | | within such time as the respondent's response is due. In no | 24 | | event shall venue be deemed jurisdictional. |
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| 1 | | Section 60. Reciprocity. A marriage between persons of the | 2 | | same sex, a civil union, or a substantially similar legal | 3 | | relationship other than common law marriage, legally entered | 4 | | into in another jurisdiction, shall be recognized in Illinois | 5 | | as a civil union. | 6 | | Section 90. Severability. If any part of this Act or its | 7 | | application to any person or circumstance is adjudged invalid, | 8 | | the adjudication or application shall not affect the validity | 9 | | of this Act as a whole or of any other part.
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