AN ACT Relating to creating a commissioner of civil marriages; amending RCW 26.04.050; and adding a new section to chapter 26.04 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1.  RCW 26.04.050 and 2012 c 3 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:

The following named officers and persons, active or retired, are hereby authorized to solemnize marriages, to wit: Justices of the supreme court, judges of the court of appeals, judges of the superior courts, supreme court commissioners, court of appeals commissioners, superior court commissioners, commissioners of marriage, any regularly licensed or ordained minister or any priest, imam, rabbi, or similar official of any religious organization, and judges of courts of limited jurisdiction as defined in RCW 3.02.010.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 26.04 RCW to read as follows:

(1) For each county, the county clerk is designated as the commissioner of civil marriages.

(2) The commissioner of civil marriages may appoint deputy marriage commissioners, who may solemnize marriages under the direction of the commissioner.

(3) To be appointed a deputy marriage commissioner, an individual must submit an application containing the following:

(a) The names of the participants in the marriage ceremony to be solemnized;

(b) The date, location, and county of the marriage ceremony to be solemnized; and

(c) A monetary fee, to be established by the county in which the marriage ceremony will take place.

(4) Once appointed, a deputy marriage commissioner may perform only the ceremony identified under subsection (3) of this section. The appointment is valid for sixty days from the time the application is submitted.

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