- By Dan Veaner
- News
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The Lansing Town Board voted unanimously Wednesday to waive the marriage license fee for couples when either party is an active military member. The new law augments a state law waving New York State's portion of the fee.
"On August 20th Governor Cuomo signed a bill amending the Domestic Relations Law and waiving the state portion of the fee levied when someone applies to a town clerk for a marriage license, explained Lansing Town Clerk Debbie Munson. "Part of the fee stays with the town and part of the fee goes to New York State. Governor Cuomo waived the state portion if either party is an active member of the military. Towns and cities may elect to waive their portion of the marriage license fee."
Munson brought the idea to the Town Board, after learning about the law through a 'grapevine' of local municipal clerks.
"The local town clerks found out about the new law when somebody ran into somebody at the local post office who had heard about that," she said. "When the local clerks called the New York State Department of Health (that has jurisdiction over marriage licenses) they knew nothing about the new law."
"These brave men and women leave their loved ones behind and risk their lives to protect the freedoms and values that this nation and this state were founded upon," Cuomo said, after signing the bill in August. "Waiving this fee is one small way to thank these valiant New Yorkers for their service."
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