While the current marriage age in Virginia is 18, dangerous loopholes in the law allow 16-and-17-year-old emancipated minors to be entered into marriage and 16-and-17-year-olds to be emancipated for the purpose of marriage. These loopholes became law in 2016. Previously, 16-and-17-years-olds could be entered into marriage with parental consent, and children age 15 or younger, with no minimum specified, could be entered into marriage with parental consent in case of pregnancy. Though the 2016 law was a good first step, these new loopholes must be closed. HB994 eliminates these dangerous loopholes and ends child marriage in Virginia once and for all. Emancipation is intended for children who cannot be reunited with their parents and so need some limited rights of adulthood to navigate the world independently until they turn 18. Minors do not need marriage to navigate the world independently. The limited rights emancipated minors receive specifically exclude engaging in activities that could be harmful due to their age, such as buying alcohol and tobacco. As marriage before 18 is a harmful practice and categorized by the U.S. Department of State as a human rights abuse, it definitely should be excluded. Since the limited rights emancipated minors receive exclude rights with constitutional or statutory age requirements, emancipated minors and advocates working with them often are unclear on which rights they have. It is unclear, for example, whether an emancipated minor can enter a domestic violence shelter. Emancipated minors also often have a hard time accessing even the rights they do have. Imagine, for example, how a landlord would feel about renting an apartment to a 17-year-old, even one who is emancipated. An emancipation exception to the marriage age also opens up the terrible possibility that minors will be forced to emancipate so that they can be forced to marry, especially since the law allows for emancipation for the purpose of marriage. Minors being coerced into marriage may fear familial violence should they refuse to comply, or they may be physically or emotionally manipulated into an unwanted marriage. Because of this fear, no minor that we, or our allies, have ever worked with notified the court they were being forced to marry when there was a judicial review process in place. A minor being emancipated for the purpose of marriage would have little to no recourse to prevent the marriage due to their limited legal rights. An emancipation loophole also removes one of the only options AHA and other advocates have to help girls whose family plans to take them overseas for a forced marriage. Currently advocates can help such minors to emancipate, but advocates cannot do that if emancipation means the parents can marry off the girl without taking her overseas. Marriage before 18 is a human rights abuse that destroys American girls' health, education and economic opportunities and significantly increases their risk of experiencing violence. These devastating impacts do not disappear if we stamp "emancipated" on a girl's forehead. AHA has worked with victims facing child marriage from across the U.S. Virginia should not participate in child marriage or make it legally possible for parents to force minors to marry. The solution is simple: eliminate the dangerous loophole in the marriage laws that place the minors of Virginia at risk of exploitation and abuse and vote YES on HB994.

Mr Chair, Members of the Committee, My name is Bobbee Cardillo, representing the Zonta Club of Fairfax County, Zonta International District 3 and the Zonta Club of Hampton Roads. Zonta Is an international women's rights organization founded in the US over 100 years ago. We currently partner with UNFPA and UNICEF USA on a Global Programme to End Child Marriage in 12 countries in Africa and Asia. 193 countries including the US have recognized child marriage as a human rights abuse and have committed to ending it by 2030. In the US, child marriage has many negative impacts: -Child brides are more likely to be victims of domestic violence. Young girls 16-19 face intimate partner violence at almost 3X the national average. --They are more likely to experience mood and anxiety disorders including major depression and have 23% more medical issues in their lives --70-80% of such marriages end in divorce --child marriage increases the likelihood of long-term poverty.. 31% more likely to live in future poverty and and teen mothers who divorce, the number doubles. We recognize that VA improved our laws re child marriage in 2016. However, the current law still allows emancipated minors of 16 and 17 to marry. The harms just mentioned may occur whether th minor is emancipated or not. Child marriage has been eliminated in 10 of the 50 states in the last 6 years. We wish VA to be the 11th and respectfully urge you to pass HB994.

Comments Document

Attached.

Comments Document

Virginia House of Delegates - Courts of Justice Committee Bill Number: HB 994 Marriage; establishes legal age to be 18 years. The Honorable Chair Hope, Vice Chair Simon, and the Honorable Members Watts, Sullivan, Delaney, Maldonado, Hernandez, Cousins, Reaser, Thomas, Callsen, Keys-Gamarra, Kilgore, Leftwich, Ballard, Williams, Batten, Cordoza, Arnold, Davis, Obenshain, Earley: I strongly support HB 994 (ends child marriage). I would like my position noted for the legislative record. I would like to Submit the Written Testimony attached.

Comments Document

As a survivor of forced marriage, I am in support of HB 994 and have provided my testimony, attached. No child should ever be married. It is in most cases statutory rape and is considered a war crime by the Hague. Let's change this harmful practice. This is my mission. Thank you for bringing this legislation to vote and for potentially leading the way in America.

Comments Document

While the current marriage age in Virginia is 18, dangerous loopholes in the law allow 16-and-17-year-old emancipated minors to be entered into marriage or 16-and-17-year-old-minors to be emancipated for the purpose of marriage. These loopholes became law in 2016. Though the 2016 law was a good first step, these new loopholes must be closed. Child marriage leads to devastating and lifelong consequences and can easily be forced.

My name is Lauren Van Wagoner, and I am a survivor of child marriage. On November 3, 2006, my mom drove me to school. I turned in a research paper and I was promptly checked out of school for the day. My 21 year old boyfriend and I drove with my mother to Florida due to their more lenient laws, and I was married. I was 17 and a senior in high school. I complied with my marriage because I didn’t see another option. I thought that I was doing what was right by my religion and I felt in my heart that marriage was right for me. The reality is, I wasn’t mature enough to make that decision. As a 17 year old, I was only thinking of not having a curfew and preventing my ex husband from facing religious excommunication. I wasn’t thinking of the role that came with becoming a wife or what was best for my future. The next 12 years of my life were a horror story. I dealt with abuse, lies, and infidelity in my marriage. In 2018 my husband abused me in front of my children, and he walked out the door. For the first time in my entire life I was alone. I didn’t know what to do. I was a para at a public school, didn’t have a vehicle, and I lived in rural Kansas. I was left with 4 small children. My entire adulthood was dedicated to my household and being a mom. I found myself without any job skills or a college education. After living for 6 months on our farm without indoor running water or heat, I decided to sell the property and move to Kansas City. I went back to school at KU and eventually found financial security. Today my ex husband is in Leavenworth, serving a 14 month sentence for violating probation and making threats against the lives of women. This is the future I could have faced. My story is rare. I am one of the lucky ones. I got out of my marriage. Just like me, minors often become stuck in a cycle of poverty and abuse because they can’t escape. As you can imagine, reciting my story is painful, however, I stand and I do it again and again in hopes that one day underage girls will be safe. In hopes that I leave a better world to my own 3 daughters, one of whom is currently only 2 years younger than I was when I was wed. I am working to help bring about change on this exact issue in both Kansas and Missouri. I urge you to take action on SB 944 and to end child marriage in Virgina without exception.

Thank you the opportunity to provide written comments. Child marriage is a human rights abuse which has no place in the world and as great of a country we are which is always striving to be and do better by everyone, why do we forget our own? WHY do we forget our own children right here on our soil? Virginia needs to join in on protecting our children from this human rights abuse. Let’s end child marriage in Virginia by raising the age of marriage to 18, no exceptions and without the right to emancipation with intent to marry because that is one of the loopholes that helps to continue this horrific practice. Please vote for our children. Vote to protect our children. Vote for HB994 which would ban child marriage in the great state of Virginia. Virginia is for lovers? Well let’s start really loving our children for starters!!! Thank you.