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NH Child Marriage Ban in Jeopardy

Today, please tell the NH House Children and Family Law Committee that you OPPOSE the pending bill that would return child marriage to the state.

There is a hearing on Tuesday, January 28, 2025 that will undo all of our hard work and LOWER the marriage age in NH to 17 if one party is active duty military.


New Hampshire Representative Margaret Drye introduced legislation that doesn't make sense. The US military already allows service members to name beneficiaries for death benefits, and minors can qualify for health coverage through the state - because they are minors.


Please take action today and submit written testimony OPPOSING THIS BILL. If you are an active or retired service member, please state this in your testimony. Your voice matters!

At the bottom of this message is sample testimony in opposition to the bill. Please feel free to use the heading and talking points for your own testimony in opposition. (The sample was provided courtesy of our partner, UnChained At Last.


To submit your testimony, follow the steps below:


1. On this page fill in your first and last name, your address and your email address. 

2. Select January 28th on the calendar.

3. Select House Children and Family Law from the "Select the Committee" dropdown menu

4. Select 11:15 am - HB433 from the "Choose the Bill" dropdown menu

5. In the "I am" dropdown menu, select the option that best describes you (e.g. "a member of the public" or "a lobbyist"

6. In the "I'm Representing" field choose either "Myself" or the organization you represent.

7. Select the option "I Oppose this Bill"

8. Either upload your testimony or type it in the provided box.

9. Hit submit

10. If you uploaded testimony, please email me a copy as well.

Read about the dangers of child marriage, why it is a human rights abuse and how the Justice of the Peace Association helped end child marriage in the state of New Hampshire.

Membership in the Justice of the Peace Association offers connections with couples, professional development, and it allows us to support advocacy issues like this one.


Thank you for your support.


Best,

Loretta


Loretta Jay

Managing Member

Justice of the Peace Association

lorettajay@JPus.org

Testimony in Strong Opposition to HB433: Lowering the Marriage Age Presented to the New Hampshire House Children and Family Law Committee

January 28, 2025


Chair Pearson, Vice Chair DeSimone and Distinguished Committee Members:


I am a New Hampshire resident and I urge you to reject HB433.

  • Last year the New Hampshire legislature stood up for girls by passing SB359 and making the marriage age 18, no exceptions. That legislation cost nothing, harmed no one and ended a human rights abuse that destroys girls’ lives.
  • HB433 would undo that progress and lower the marriage age to 17 if one party to the marriage were an active-duty member of the armed forces.
  • Every neighboring state except Maine has made the marriage age 18, no exceptions. States across the U.S. and countries around the world are doing the same. HB433 is a dangerous and unnecessary bill that would move the state in the opposite direction of the region, the nation and the world.
  • The U.S. State Department calls all marriage before age 18, including at age 17, a human rights abuse. It destroys nearly every aspect of a girl’s life, including her health, education, economic opportunities and physical safety. Some 70% to 80% of marriage before age 18 ends in divorce, which brings additional hardship and instability.
  • Marriage before age 18, including at age 17, creates a nightmarish legal trap. Minors cannot easily leave home, enter a domestic violence shelter, retain an attorney or bring a legal action in their own name – until the day they turn 18.
  • Child marriage is just as dangerous in a military context as in a civilian context. A minor who is a servicemember or who is being forced to marry a servicemember should get just as much protection as a minor who is a civilian or is being forced to marry a civilian.
  • A servicemember can assign their life insurance and their death benefits to anyone, regardless of marital status, and a servicemember’s military benefits extend to their children, regardless of the servicemember’s marital status. As for health and housing benefits, using a teen’s current financial dependency to justify an early marriage just sets up the teen for a lifetime of dependency. Teens deserve and can get health and housing resources that do not require them to enter an adult sexual relationship with lifelong impact.


Sincerely, Your Name Hometown


Justice of the Peace Association| 203.255.7703 | www.JPus.org

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