Louisiana marriage law rewrite wins passage, amid lawsuit
BATON ROUGE - Louisiana lawmakers have agreed to add an exception to a law requiring people to produce a birth certificate to get a marriage license.
A federal judge in March stopped enforcement of the 2016 statute after a foreign-born U.S. citizen sued because he was unable to produce the birth document and obtain a marriage license.
Language added into the bill by Rep. Jerome "Zee" Zeringue, a Houma Republican, would allow applicants who aren't able to provide a birth certificate to get a waiver from a judge.
The proposal was approved in an 84-8 House vote and a 33-0 Senate vote on Thursday, and heads to the governor for consideration.
Sen. Danny Martiny, a Kenner Republican, says he hopes the adjusted language can resolve the litigation.