Assembly passes increase in marriage license fee

By David McGrath Schwartz, Cy Ryan

Published Tuesday, May 5, 2009 | 12:55 p.m.

Updated Tuesday, May 5, 2009 | 2:33 p.m.

CARSON CITY -- A bill that would increase marriage license fees by $5 and earmark that money for domestic violence programs passed the Assembly on Monday and now heads to Gov. Jim Gibbons' desk.

Senate Bill 14 would boost the domestic violence fee portion of the marriage license fee from $20 to $25. The cost of a license now is $55, of which $20 of that goes to domestic violence programs that provide shelter, hot lines and support groups.

Assembly Minority Leader Heidi Gansert, R-Reno, said Monday that domestic violence organizations came to her and said their funding was down because the number of marriage licenses was down.

Assemblywoman Debbie Smith, D-Sparks, said "these programs have served so many women in times of need. This will continue to make sure programs are funded during a serious time of stress."

The bill passed 38-3, with Assemblyman Ty Cobb, R-Reno, Assemblyman Ed Goedhart, R-Amargosa Valley, and Assemblyman Richard McArthur, R-Las Vegas, voting against. It passed the Senate earlier this session unanimously.

Gibbons' spokesman, Dan Burns, said the governor will sign the bill when it comes to his desk.

"Governor Gibbons believes this issue is so serious, sometimes a matter of life and death, that the small fee increase is appropriate," Burns wrote in an e-mail.

Earlier this session, Estelle Murphy, director of Safe Nest in Las Vegas, told the committee the number of domestic violence cases it handles has doubled in the last 10 years.

Safe Nest supplied 39,000 bed nights for battered women and children last year, while its budget fell from $1.7 million to $1.2 million, she said. Murphy expects the budget to decline another 8 to 10 percent this year.