BILL ANALYSIS ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2600| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ THIRD READING Bill No: AB 2600 Author: Ma (D), et al Amended: 8/31/10 in Senate Vote: 27 - Urgency ALL PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT SUBJECT : Marriage: solemnization SOURCE : Mayor, City of Los Angeles DIGEST : Senate Floor Amendments of 8/20/10 deleted the entire contents of the bill. These amendments now constitute the bill. This bill now authorizes elected mayors to solemnize marriages while that person holds office, and requires that the mayor obtain and review from the county clerk all available instructions for marriage solemnization before the mayor first solemnizes a marriage. Senate Floor Amendments of 8/31/10 add language to avoid chaptering problems with SB 906 (Leno). ANALYSIS : Existing law provides that a marriage may be solemnized by authorized persons of any religious denomination, by specified legislators, constitutional officers, and California Members of Congress, while those persons are currently holding that office, and by specified justices, judges, and magistrates, both current and retired. CONTINUED AB 2600 Page 2 This bill authorizes an elected mayor of a city, while that person holds that office, to solemnize a marriage ceremony, and requires the mayor to obtain and review from the county clerk all available instructions for marriage solemnization before the mayor first solemnizes a marriage. The provisions of this bill were contained in a prior version of AB 1265 (Ma). Those provisions were amended out when this bill became the Drinking Water Supply Act of 2012. The AB 1265 Senate Floor Analysis of September 4, 2009, indicated the following: "Currently, mayors must be deputized by county clerks before performing each ceremony. At least 13 other states currently authorize mayors to solemnize marriages, including Michigan, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. This bill would authorize elected mayors of charter cities to perform marriages just as state legislators, officers and justices currently do. It would streamline the authorization process, relieve counties' caseloads, and provide citizens with more options as they choose their wedding officiants." FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local: No SUPPORT : (Verified 8/31/10) Mayor, City of Los Angeles (source) RJG:mw 8/31/10 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END ****