Lawmakers tackle beginning, end of marriage

Proposed changes to matrimony in Utah will run the gamut in the upcoming legislative session, from the application for a marriage license to the payment of child support once the union ends.

One of the more controversial measures, proposed by Sen. Greg Bell, R-Fruit Heights, would update the state's decade-old child support guidelines. The change would likely increase child support amounts across the board, which Bell expects to be met with strong resistance from parents currently paying support.

"We're trying to be fair to children, and basically it's an increase, so noncustodial parents are going to not like it," he said.

John Kriesel, who represents a group of noncustodial parents, said he and others will vigorously oppose the legislation.

"Certainly this is going to be a hot-button issue," said Kriesel, who is scheduled to meet with Bell today to discuss the proposed changes. Key to the discussion, he said, will be the contention that the bill may have unintended consequences.

"Any increased financial incentive for divorces is going to increase divorces," Kriesel said. "Is that really what the Legislature intends?"

Apparently not, judging from other bills expected to come before lawmakers when the Utah Legislature convenes Monday.

Rep. Peggy Wallace, R-West Jordan, has proposed legislation titled "Costs of Divorce," presumably to examine the monetary effect of divorce on the state. Last year, hoping to cut down on divorces by making them tougher to obtain, Wallace ran legislation that would have eliminated Utah's "no-fault" divorce statute.

Wallace, who did not return calls seeking details of her newest proposal, ultimately withdrew the controversial legislation and instead opted for the creation of a task force to study the cause of marital splits.

More than 12,000 Utah couples filed for divorce in 2005, according to the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Bell is also considering abandoning an effort to eliminate the mandatory 90-day waiting period for divorces. Currently, couples with children can avoid the waiting period by taking a course but couples without children cannot.

To level the playing field, Bell has proposed legislation doing away with the waiting period altogether, but heard from several colleagues on the Judiciary Interim Committee of specific instances where couples had gotten back together during the 90-day period.