California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 2349


Introduced by Assembly Member Chiu

February 18, 2016


An act to amend Section 298 of the Family Code, relating to domestic partners.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2349, as introduced, Chiu. Domestic partners.

Existing law authorizes 2 unmarried, unrelated adults who have chosen to share one another’s lives in an intimate and committed relationship of mutual caring to establish a domestic partnership by filing a Declaration of Domestic Partnership with the Secretary of State if both persons are members of the same sex or one or both are over 62 years of age. Existing law requires the Secretary of State to prepare the form for the Declaration of Domestic Partnership pursuant to specified requirements. The Declaration of Domestic Partnership requires, among other things, each person who wants to become a domestic partner to provide a mailing address.

This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to this provision.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P1    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 298 of the Family Code is amended to
2read:

P2    1

298.  

(a) (1) The Secretary of State shall prepare forms entitled
2“Declaration of Domestic Partnership” and “Notice of Termination
3of Domestic Partnership” to meet the requirements of this division.
4These forms shall require the signature and seal of an
5acknowledgment by a notary public to be binding and valid.

6(2) When funding allows, the Secretary of State shall include
7on the form notice that a lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender
8specific domestic abuse brochure is available upon request.

9(b) (1) The Secretary of State shall distribute these forms to
10each county clerk. These forms shall be available to the public at
11the office of the Secretary of State and each county clerk.

12(2) The Secretary of State shall, by regulation, establish fees
13for the actual costs of processing each of these forms, and the cost
14for preparing and sending the mailings and notices required
15pursuant to Section 299.3, and shall charge these fees to persons
16filing the forms.

17(3) There is hereby established a fee of twenty-three dollars
18($23) to be charged in addition to the existing fees established by
19regulation to persons filing domestic partner registrations pursuant
20to Section 297 for development and support of a lesbian, gay,
21bisexual, and transgender curriculum for training workshops on
22domestic violence, conducted pursuant to Section 13823.15 of the
23Penal Code, and for the support of a grant program to promote
24healthy nonviolent relationships in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
25transgender community. This paragraph shall not apply to persons
26of opposite sexes filing a domestic partnership registration and
27who meet the qualifications described in subparagraph (B) of
28paragraph (5) of subdivision (b) of Section 297.

29(4) The fee established by paragraph (3) shall be deposited in
30the Equality in Prevention and Services for Domestic Abuse Fund,
31which is hereby established. The fund shall be administered by
32the Office of Emergency Services, and expenditures from the fund
33shall be used to support the purposes of paragraph (3).

34(c) The Declaration of Domestic Partnership shall require each
35person who wants to become a domestic partner tobegin delete (1) stateend deletebegin insert do all
36of the following:end insert

37begin insert(1)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertStateend insert that he or she meets the requirements of Section 297
38at the time the form isbegin delete signed, (2) provideend deletebegin insert signed.end insert

39begin insert(2)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertProvideend insert a mailingbegin delete address, (3) stateend deletebegin insert address.end insert

P3    1begin insert(3)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertStateend insert that he or she consents to the jurisdiction of the
2Superior Courts of California for the purpose of a proceeding to
3obtain a judgment of dissolution or nullity of the domestic
4partnership or for legal separation of partners in the domestic
5partnership, or for any other proceeding related to the partners’
6rights and obligations, even if one or both partners ceases to be a
7resident of, or to maintain a domicile in, thisbegin delete state, (4) signend deletebegin insert state.end insert

8begin insert(4)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertSignend insert the form with a declaration that representations made
9therein are true, correct, and contain no material omissions of fact
10to the best knowledge and belief of thebegin delete applicant, and (5) haveend delete
11begin insert applicant.end insert

12begin insert(5)end insertbegin insertend insertbegin insertHaveend insert a notary public acknowledge his or her signature. Both
13partners’ signatures shall be affixed to one Declaration of Domestic
14Partnership form, which form shall then be transmitted to the
15Secretary of State according to the instructions provided on the
16form. Filing an intentionally and materially false Declaration of
17Domestic Partnership shall be punishable as a misdemeanor.

18(d) The Declaration of Domestic Partnership form shall contain
19an optional section for either party or both parties to indicate a
20change in name pursuant to Section 298.6. The optional section
21shall require a party indicating a change in name to provide his or
22her date of birth.



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