Four bills are pending before the Massachusetts General Court of the Commonwealth that are important to JPs. If you want changes to the One-Day rule, or would like an increase in the fees you may charge to couples, your state Representatives and Senators need to hear from you! SD2216: establishes a commission study to evaluate the One-Day rule SD 941 increases application fees for 1-Dayers (Gobi) SD 943 broadens JP’s advertising to include in “any public media” (Gobi) SD 659 increases the fees that JPs may charge to $120 in-town, and $180 for out-of-town ceremonies (DiDomenico). Read more about these […]
Search Results for "NH-New%20Hampshire/town/carroll/Jackson"
Manage Membership
JPus Member Only Area – Please Login to View.
Not a member yet? Learn more about the benefits of membership and join here…!
NH House Testimony – 2024
The Justice of the Peace Association submitted written testimony, co-signed by 35 state justices of the peace, to the NH House in support of New Hampshire’s 2024 bill to end child marriage. This is a long-standing effort to hopefully end this human rights abuse taking place in the state. Related Links Follow our efforts to end child marriage in New Hampshire – since 2019! Information about our advocacy and partnerships for officiants about child and forced marriage. Education and training for officiants about child and forced marriage JPus has been on the forefront of legislative activity to end child marriage in other states Follow […]
CT Clerk Conference
Attention CT JPs! 9/13/2018 – JPus will have an information table at the Connecticut Town Clerk Association Conference. The conference will be held at Water’s Edge Resort, Westbrook, CT on September 13, 2018. Please join JPus to meet and greet the state’s town clerks and help explain the wonderful services that our JPs provide.
Are You Vaccinated?
Whoa! Careful here. We don’t want to be rude, but… Asking Wedding Guests COVID Questions Since the coronavirus pandemic made its unwelcome appearance in our lives last year, we are in new territory. Now, we need to think about who will attend the big day in a whole new way. Beyond budgets, valuing guest safety also influences who is invited. More importantly, let’s give consideration to how they are invited. This means thinking about all guests. Loved ones with certain medical conditions may be at higher risk of contracting the virus, even if they are vaccinated. In contrast, attendees who […]
CT JP Appointments ~ Q&A
We’ve heard the complaints from JPs and Town Clerks about Connecticut’s JP appointment process and the lack of JP qualifications. As a result, last year the Justice of the Peace Association took action and performed extensive research. And then, last month we released our white paper with our findings. On Thursday, March 30, 2023 at 6PM, join me for a Zoom presentation and Q&A. We’ll talk about what we learned, what was done and what is next. This is an interactive session for JPs and Town Clerks. Q&A, March 30th at 6:00 PM The March 30, 2023 Q&A event has […]
Discussion About Video Officiants
This event has ended. Please visit our Event Page for Upcoming Activities. Stay-home orders have made audio-video marriages a thing. Meaning, the couple in one location and the officiant in another. So far, none of the states that JPus is active in has taken this route. But the governors of New York, New Jersey and Colorado have, and now video (Zoom, Skype, Facetime, etc) officiants are allowed in those states. To evaluate the pros and cons, we invited JPus members to talk together during a Zoom call on May 19, 2020. Video Officiants: Why they Trouble Us With video marriages […]
NH Special Officiant Bill Died
A Long-Shot It was a long-shot, but we did it! The fight over the New Hampshire Special Marriage Officiant bill is over. Thank you to all the New Hampshire JPs who didn’t give up. Together, our emails, phone calls, signatures and testimony made a difference. Ultimately, the bill got stuck in conference and died. Read more to get a better understanding of what happened.
MA Bill Improves Compensation – 2019
Regulating Fees During the spring 2019 legislative session, Massachusetts Senator Sal DiDomenico submitted a bill, S1833, to increase the fees that justices of the peace are allowed to charge to officiate a wedding – from $100 to $120 for in-town ceremonies, and $150 to $180 for out-of-town. As far as we know, the Commonwealth is the only state that restricts fees this way. Related Links JPus’ white paper about 1-Day solemnizers speaks to the implications of regulating JP’s fees S 1831 establishes a commission study to evaluate the One-Day rule Other JPus advocacy JPus Statement of Support JPus is not in […]
Ending Child Marriage – NH 2020
JPus submitted written testimony to the New Hampshire Child and Family Law Committee supporting HB1516. See the additional links, below, for related activity to end child marriage in NH and other states. Related Links See the original text of the bill, HB 1516. Read more about the history of child marriage in New Hampshire, and JPus’ work in the state. Information about our advocacy, partnerships and training for officiants about child and forced marriage.
Ending Child Marriage – NH 2019
JPus submitted written testimony to the New Hampshire Child and Family Law Committee supporting HB378. The bill, had it passed, would have ended child marriage in the state. Instead it got blocked with amendments. See the additional links, below, for related activity to end child marriage in NH and other states. Related Links Read more about the history of child marriage in New Hampshire, and JPus’ work in the state. See JPus’ written testimony in 2020 to end child marriage in NH JPus’ advocacy efforts to end child marriage in NH and other states can be found here.
Changes to the Laws
Don’t be caught behind the times. Stay current on new laws that affect JPs and notaries. Connecticut Gender Neutral Terms on Marriage License Effective July 1, 2021, the terms Bride and Groom are no longer on Connecticut marriage licenses, replaced with Spouse 1 and Spouse 2. Read how JPus took action to make this validating change happen. Race Information Not Collected The marriage license application will no longer seek a couple’s race, effective July 1, 2021. Probate Judge Required for 16, 17 Year Olds to Marry Effective October 1, 2017, in addition to parental consent, anyone under the age of […]
JP Appointments Bill in Jeopardy
Contact YOUR STATE SENATOR and REPRESENTATIVE ask them to Vote YES on SB1140 Inclusive of Section 3 Working Group Please take a few minutes to email your Senator and Representative and ask them to vote YES on SB1140 inclusive of Section 3, creating a JP Working Group Look up your State Representative and Senator Call or send your State Representative and Senator an email asking them to support SB1140 – Inclusive of Section 3. See talking points and sample e-mail language below. The details are important. Current Situation On May 16, 2023, a new amendment was submitted in the Senate that guts the part […]
Recent Comments