May 16, 23

NEWS / Nevada Senate passes bill to simplify name changes for marriage certificates

The Nevada Senate passed a bill to allow individuals to amend their marriage certificates by presenting court-issued documentation to a county clerk or recorder. The legislation is particularly relevant to transgender individuals who may have changed their names after marriage, and want to go back to amend their marriage certificate. It was already possible to apply name changes to other government-issued documents, such as birth certificates, driver’s licenses, passports, and social security cards, with marriage certificates being the only document which could not be easily amended. The bill passed with nearly unanimous support from both Republicans and Democrats, with only one state senator voting against it. The bill will now head to the Nevada Assembly. The bill also repeals the authority of county clerks and rural recorders to authorize name changes after marriage, with the rationale being that married individuals often show up to the clerk’s office without having a discussion on name changes or that they change their mind on the name change between getting married and visiting the Nevada DMV to change the name on their license. The Nevada DMV is required to amend licenses to the name appearing on the marriage certificate. Given Las Vegas’s fame for being a premier wedding destination, Clark County Clerk issues about 80,000 marriage licenses per year. Clark County Clerk Lynn Marie Goya was quoted by Nevada Current as saying that the new law would streamline the process of issuing marriage certificates.