Good discount for advice

Auto insurance companies do it. Pet stores do it. Why not the marriage license desk?

If state Rep. Roz McGee, D-Salt Lake, has her way, couples who opt to receive some marriage counseling before tying the knot would get a $20 discount on their marriage license. And compared to the fact divorces set the state back $3.5 million in the amount of time judges and other court personnel spend, McGee says that $20 would be a drop in the bucket.

But naysayers claim those drops add up — to as much as $50,000 in lost revenues each year.

For the moment, the bill has legs. All but two members of the Judiciary Interim Committee got behind it. And experts have testified that a little premarital advice would go a long way in helping quell divorces.

We like the idea. If a little counseling can help newlyweds anticipate some of the strains of marriage and maybe even save a few unions, the investment — in human terms — would be worth it. Anything that puts stitches in a society that seems intent on rending itself shouldn't be ignored. And if the numbers don't add up at the end of a certain trial period, the program could be dropped.

For now, it's worth a shot.

Government will never be able to make people responsible, of course. But it can show them ways to proceed if they choose responsibility. One lawmaker mused about what would come along next — teaching mothers to change diapers for a rebate?

Why not? If such a program proved viable, raised the quality of life of citizens and was found to save money, where's the harm?

And where would the harm be in giving a discount on dog licenses to people willing to learn to be good pet owners and to eateries willing to learn about nutrition, if such programs proved to be both helpful and cost effective?

As for counseling those about to tie the knot, some bugs still must be worked out in the plan. The notion of the state handing out wholesale ideas of what an ideal marriage should be may have the uneasy feeling of a totalitarian scheme to some. Incorporating religions into the mix would be a plus. And making sure the counseling is sound would be vital.

In the end, experience has shown that weddings are easy, but marriages are hard. And with about half the unions in the United States ending up on the rocks, a little less wedding planning and a little more marriage planning would appear to be a position most lawmakers and taxpayers should be willing to support.