Marital Age Act

Joe Swanson(D-MI-2)
----98th Congress of the United States
COSPONSORS
Nancy Pelosi (D-CA-1)
IN BRIEF
It raises the minimum age to marry in the United States. It provides a solid base for a nationwide consensus. It helps criminalize forced underage marriages. 
== Section 1. Name of Bill ==
This Bill will be known as Marital Age Act for the duration of this bill, in all debates, and following enactment by the executive branch will carry the same title.
== Section 2. Findings and Definitions ==
Use this section to present findings that back up the reasons for the creation of your bill.
FINDINGS
# Whereas, child marriage continues to be a dangerous issue in our country, primarily affecting women being married to older or much older men.
# Whereas, 18 states have no minimum age to marry including many Democratic and Republican controlled states. 
# Whereas, 7 states allow for minors under the age of 16 to marry. 
# Whereas, to lead the world and have solidarity between states for such a practice. The age of marriage shall be raised to a minimum of 17 nationwide
DEFINITIONS
# Child marriage- Marriage where either the woman or man is below the age of 21. Most child marriages involve girls, many of whom are in poor socio-economic conditions
== Section 3. Ban of underage marriages ==
# All marriages between minors under the age of 17 shall be banned. 
== Section 4. Adult/Parental punishment ==
# Parents found to be forcing their children into forced underage marriages. Shall face no more than 10 years in jail and a minimum of 2 years.
# Parents found to be aiding in marrying their minors to adults will face a minimum of 4,000 dollars in fines capping at 30,000 dollars. 
# Parents or offenders who refuse to pay will face steeper fines.
Section 5. Minors path forward 
# If a minors so chooses, they can be allowed to emancipate from the parents and receive financial support from both the parent and the offender for upwards of 3 years minimum, anonymously paid through a government agency. 
== Section 6. Funding ==
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FUNDING SPECIFICS
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Category:Law
Category:Bills