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AB-205 Domestic partners.(2003-2004)



Current Version: 09/22/03 - Chaptered

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AB205:v89#DOCUMENT

Assembly Bill No. 205
CHAPTER 421

An act to amend Sections 297, 298, and 298.5 of, to add Sections 297.5, 299.2, and 299.3 to, to repeal Section 299.5 of, and to repeal and add Section 299 of, the Family Code, to amend Section 14771 of the Government Code, and to amend Section 3 of Chapter 447 of the Statutes of 2002, relating to domestic partnerships.

[ Filed with Secretary of State  September 22, 2003. Approved by Governor  September 19, 2003. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 205, Goldberg. Domestic partners.
Existing law provides for the issuance of a marriage license and specifies the rights and obligations of married persons.
Existing law also provides for the establishment and the termination of domestic partnerships. Existing law requires the Secretary of State to prepare and distribute forms for creating and terminating domestic partnerships. Existing law specifies the requirements for completing the form necessary to create a domestic partnership and provides that a violation of this provision is a misdemeanor.
This bill would enact the California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003. The bill would modify the procedure and the accompanying form for terminating domestic partnerships, and require additional duties of the Secretary of State in relation, as specified. The bill would also revise the requirements for entering into a domestic partnership to require each person to consent to the jurisdiction of the superior courts of this state for the purpose of a proceeding to obtain a judgment of dissolution or nullity of the domestic partnership. The bill would revise the provision described above making it a misdemeanor to violate the provision specifying the requirements for completing the form necessary to create a domestic partnership. The bill would instead specifically provide that filing an intentionally and materially false Declaration of Domestic Partnership would be punishable as a misdemeanor, thereby creating a new crime. By creating a new crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
This bill would extend the rights and duties of marriage to persons registered as domestic partners on and after January 1, 2005. The bill would provide that the superior courts shall have jurisdiction over all proceedings governing the dissolution of domestic partnerships, nullity of domestic partnerships, and legal separation of partners in domestic partnerships. These proceedings would follow the same procedures as the equivalent proceedings with respect to marriage. The bill would provide that a legal union validly formed in another jurisdiction that is substantially equivalent to a domestic partnership would be recognized as a valid domestic partnership in this state. The bill would require the Secretary of State to send a letter on 3 separate, specified occasions to the mailing address of registered domestic partners informing them of these changes, as specified. The bill would also require the Director of General Services, through the forms management center, to provide notice to state agencies, among others, that in reviewing and revising all public-use forms that refer to or use the terms spouse, husband, wife, father, mother, marriage, or marital status, that appropriate references to domestic partner, parent, or domestic partnership be included. The bill would also make related and conforming changes. The bill would further make specified provisions operative on January 1, 2005. The bill would impose a state-mandated local program by adding to the duties of county clerks. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement, including the creation of a State Mandates Claims Fund to pay the costs of mandates that do not exceed $1,000,000 statewide and other procedures for claims whose statewide costs exceed $1,000,000.
This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 (a) This act is intended to help California move closer to fulfilling the promises of inalienable rights, liberty, and equality contained in Sections 1 and 7 of Article 1 of the California Constitution by providing all caring and committed couples, regardless of their gender or sexual orientation, the opportunity to obtain essential rights, protections, and benefits and to assume corresponding responsibilities, obligations, and duties and to further the state’s interests in promoting stable and lasting family relationships, and protecting Californians from the economic and social consequences of abandonment, separation, the death of loved ones, and other life crises.
(b) The Legislature hereby finds and declares that despite longstanding social and economic discrimination, many lesbian, gay, and bisexual Californians have formed lasting, committed, and caring relationships with persons of the same sex. These couples share lives together, participate in their communities together, and many raise children and care for other dependent family members together. Many of these couples have sought to protect each other and their family members by registering as domestic partners with the State of California and, as a result, have received certain basic legal rights. Expanding the rights and creating responsibilities of registered domestic partners would further California’s interests in promoting family relationships and protecting family members during life crises, and would reduce discrimination on the bases of sex and sexual orientation in a manner consistent with the requirements of the California Constitution.
(c) This act is not intended to repeal or adversely affect any other ways in which relationships between adults may be recognized or given effect in California, or the legal consequences of those relationships, including, among other things, civil marriage, enforcement of palimony agreements, enforcement of powers of attorney, appointment of conservators or guardians, and petitions for second parent or limited consent adoption.

SEC. 2.

 This act shall be known and may be cited as “The California Domestic Partner Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003.”

SEC. 3.

 Section 297 of the Family Code is amended to read:

297.
 (a) Domestic partners are two adults who have chosen to share one another’s lives in an intimate and committed relationship of mutual caring.
(b) A domestic partnership shall be established in California when both persons file a Declaration of Domestic Partnership with the Secretary of State pursuant to this division, and, at the time of filing, all of the following requirements are met:
(1) Both persons have a common residence.
(2) Neither person is married to someone else or is a member of another domestic partnership with someone else that has not been terminated, dissolved, or adjudged a nullity.
(3) The two persons are not related by blood in a way that would prevent them from being married to each other in this state.
(4) Both persons are at least 18 years of age.
(5) Either of the following:
(A) Both persons are members of the same sex.
(B) One or both of the persons meet the eligibility criteria under Title II of the Social Security Act as defined in 42 U.S.C. Section 402(a) for old-age insurance benefits or Title XVI of the Social Security Act as defined in 42 U.S.C. Section 1381 for aged individuals. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, persons of opposite sexes may not constitute a domestic partnership unless one or both of the persons are over the age of 62.
(6) Both persons are capable of consenting to the domestic partnership.
(c) “Have a common residence” means that both domestic partners share the same residence. It is not necessary that the legal right to possess the common residence be in both of their names. Two people have a common residence even if one or both have additional residences. Domestic partners do not cease to have a common residence if one leaves the common residence but intends to return.

SEC. 4.

 Section 297.5 is added to the Family Code, to read:

297.5.
 (a) Registered domestic partners shall have the same rights, protections, and benefits, and shall be subject to the same responsibilities, obligations, and duties under law, whether they derive from statutes, administrative regulations, court rules, government policies, common law, or any other provisions or sources of law, as are granted to and imposed upon spouses.
(b) Former registered domestic partners shall have the same rights, protections, and benefits, and shall be subject to the same responsibilities, obligations, and duties under law, whether they derive from statutes, administrative regulations, court rules, government policies, common law, or any other provisions or sources of law, as are granted to and imposed upon former spouses.
(c) A surviving registered domestic partner, following the death of the other partner, shall have the same rights, protections, and benefits, and shall be subject to the same responsibilities, obligations, and duties under law, whether they derive from statutes, administrative regulations, court rules, government policies, common law, or any other provisions or sources of law, as are granted to and imposed upon a widow or a widower.
(d) The rights and obligations of registered domestic partners with respect to a child of either of them shall be the same as those of spouses. The rights and obligations of former or surviving registered domestic partners with respect to a child of either of them shall be the same as those of former or surviving spouses.
(e) To the extent that provisions of California law adopt, refer to, or rely upon, provisions of federal law in a way that otherwise would cause registered domestic partners to be treated differently than spouses, registered domestic partners shall be treated by California law as if federal law recognized a domestic partnership in the same manner as California law.
(f) Registered domestic partners shall have the same rights regarding nondiscrimination as those provided to spouses.
(g) Notwithstanding this section, in filing their state income tax returns, domestic partners shall use the same filing status as is used on their federal income tax returns, or that would have been used had they filed federal income tax returns. Earned income may not be treated as community property for state income tax purposes.
(h) No public agency in this state may discriminate against any person or couple on the ground that the person is a registered domestic partner rather than a spouse or that the couple are registered domestic partners rather than spouses, except that nothing in this section applies to modify eligibility for long-term care plans pursuant to Chapter 15 (commencing with Section 21660) of Part 3 of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
(i) This act does not preclude any state or local agency from exercising its regulatory authority to implement statutes providing rights to, or imposing responsibilities upon, domestic partners.
(j)This section does not amend or modify any provision of the California Constitution or any provision of any statute that was adopted by initiative.
(k) This section does not amend or modify federal laws or the benefits, protections, and responsibilities provided by those laws.
(l) Where necessary to implement the rights of domestic partners under this act, gender-specific terms referring to spouses shall be construed to include domestic partners.

SEC. 5.

 Section 298 of the Family Code is amended to read:

298.
 (a) The Secretary of State shall prepare forms entitled “Declaration of Domestic Partnership” and “Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership” to meet the requirements of this division. These forms shall require the signature and seal of an acknowledgment by a notary public to be binding and valid.
(b) (1) The Secretary of State shall distribute these forms to each county clerk. These forms shall be available to the public at the office of the Secretary of State and each county clerk.
(2) The Secretary of State shall, by regulation, establish fees for the actual costs of processing each of these forms, and the cost for preparing and sending the mailings and notices required pursuant to Section 299.3, and shall charge these fees to persons filing the forms.
(c) The Declaration of Domestic Partnership shall require each person who wants to become a domestic partner to (1) state that he or she meets the requirements of Section 297 at the time the form is signed, (2) provide a mailing address, (3) state that he or she consents to the jurisdiction of the Superior Courts of California for the purpose of a proceeding to obtain a judgment of dissolution or nullity of the domestic partnership or for legal separation of partners in the domestic partnership, or for any other proceeding related to the partners’ rights and obligations, even if one or both partners ceases to be a resident of, or to maintain a domicile in, this state, (4) sign the form with a declaration that representations made therein are true, correct, and contain no material omissions of fact to the best knowledge and belief of the applicant, and (5) have a notary public acknowledge his or her signature. Both partners’ signatures shall be affixed to one Declaration of Domestic Partnership form, which form shall then be transmitted to the Secretary of State according to the instructions provided on the form. Filing an intentionally and materially false Declaration of Domestic Partnership shall be punishable as a misdemeanor.

SEC. 6.

 Section 298.5 of the Family Code is amended to read:

298.5.
 (a) Two persons desiring to become domestic partners may complete and file a Declaration of Domestic Partnership with the Secretary of State.
(b) The Secretary of State shall register the Declaration of Domestic Partnership in a registry for those partnerships, and shall return a copy of the registered form and a Certificate of Registered Domestic Partnership to the domestic partners at the mailing address provided by the domestic partners.
(c) No person who has filed a Declaration of Domestic Partnership may file a new Declaration of Domestic Partnership or enter a civil marriage with someone other than their registered domestic partner unless the most recent domestic partnership has been terminated or a final judgment of dissolution or nullity of the most recent domestic partnership has been entered. This prohibition does not apply if the previous domestic partnership ended because one of the partners died.

SEC. 7.

 Section 299 of the Family Code is repealed.

SEC. 8.

 Section 299 is added to the Family Code, to read:

299.
 (a) A domestic partnership may be terminated without filing a proceeding for dissolution of domestic partnership by the filing of a Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership with the Secretary of State pursuant to this section, provided that all of the following conditions exist at the time of the filing:
(1) The Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership is signed by both domestic partners.
(2) There are no children of the relationship of the parties born before or after registration of the domestic partnership or adopted by the parties after registration of the domestic partnership, and neither of the domestic partners, to their knowledge, is pregnant.
(3) The domestic partnership is not more than five years in duration.
(4) Neither party has any interest in real property wherever situated, with the exception of the lease of a residence occupied by either party which satisfies the following requirements:
(A) The lease does not include an option to purchase.
(B) The lease terminates within one year from the date of filing of the Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership.
(5) There are no unpaid obligations in excess of the amount described in paragraph (6) of subdivision (a) of Section 2400, as adjusted by subdivision (b) of Section 2400, incurred by either or both of the parties after registration of the domestic partnership, excluding the amount of any unpaid obligation with respect to an automobile.
(6) The total fair market value of community property assets, excluding all encumbrances and automobiles, including any deferred compensation or retirement plan, is less than the amount described in paragraph (7) of subdivision (a) of Section 2400, as adjusted by subdivision (b) of Section 2400, and neither party has separate property assets, excluding all encumbrances and automobiles, in excess of that amount.
(7) The parties have executed an agreement setting forth the division of assets and the assumption of liabilities of the community property, and have executed any documents, title certificates, bills of sale, or other evidence of transfer necessary to effectuate the agreement.
(8) The parties waive any rights to support by the other domestic partner.
(9) The parties have read and understand a brochure prepared by the Secretary of State describing the requirements, nature, and effect of terminating a domestic partnership.
(10) Both parties desire that the domestic partnership be terminated.
(b) The domestic partnership shall be terminated effective six months after the date of filing of the Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership with the Secretary of State pursuant to this section, provided that neither party has, before that date, filed with the Secretary of State a notice of revocation of the termination of domestic partnership, in the form and content as shall be prescribed by the Secretary of State, and sent to the other party a copy of the notice of revocation by first-class mail, postage prepaid, at the other party’s last known address. The effect of termination of a domestic partnership pursuant to this section shall be the same as, and shall be treated for all purposes as, the entry of a judgment of dissolution of a domestic partnership.
(c) The termination of a domestic partnership pursuant to subdivision (b) does not prejudice nor bar the rights of either of the parties to institute an action in the superior court to set aside the termination for fraud, duress, mistake, or any other ground recognized at law or in equity. A court may set aside the termination of domestic partnership and declare the termination of the domestic partnership null and void upon proof that the parties did not meet the requirements of subdivision (a) at the time of the filing of the Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership with the Secretary of State.
(d) The superior courts shall have jurisdiction over all proceedings relating to the dissolution of domestic partnerships, nullity of domestic partnerships, and legal separation of partners in a domestic partnership. The dissolution of a domestic partnership, nullity of a domestic partnership, and legal separation of partners in a domestic partnership shall follow the same procedures, and the partners shall possess the same rights, protections, and benefits, and be subject to the same responsibilities, obligations, and duties, as apply to the dissolution of marriage, nullity of marriage, and legal separation of spouses in a marriage, respectively, except as provided in subdivision (a), and except that, in accordance with the consent acknowledged by domestic partners in the Declaration of Domestic Partnership form, proceedings for dissolution, nullity, or legal separation of a domestic partnership registered in this state may be filed in the superior courts of this state even if neither domestic partner is a resident of, or maintains a domicile in, the state at the time the proceedings are filed.

SEC. 9.

 Section 299.2 is added to the Family Code, to read:

299.2.
 A legal union of two persons of the same sex, other than a marriage, that was validly formed in another jurisdiction, and that is substantially equivalent to a domestic partnership as defined in this part, shall be recognized as a valid domestic partnership in this state regardless of whether it bears the name domestic partnership.

SEC. 10.

 Section 299.3 is added to the Family Code, to read:

299.3.
 (a) On or before June 30, 2004, and again on or before December 1, 2004, and again on or before January 31, 2005, the Secretary of State shall send the following letter to the mailing address on file of each registered domestic partner who registered more than one month prior to each of those dates:
“Dear Registered Domestic Partner:
This letter is being sent to all persons who have registered with the Secretary of State as a domestic partner.
Effective January 1, 2005, California’s law related to the rights and responsibilities of registered domestic partners will change (or, if you are receiving this letter after that date, the law has changed, as of January 1, 2005). With this new legislation, for purposes of California law, domestic partners will have a great many new rights and responsibilities, including laws governing community property, those governing property transfer, those regarding duties of mutual financial support and mutual responsibilities for certain debts to third parties, and many others. The way domestic partnerships are terminated is also changing. After January 1, 2005, under certain circumstances, it will be necessary to participate in a dissolution proceeding in court to end a domestic partnership.
Domestic partners who do not wish to be subject to these new rights and responsibilities MUST terminate their domestic partnership before January 1, 2005. Under the law in effect until January 1, 2005, your domestic partnership is automatically terminated if you or your partner marry or die while you are registered as domestic partners. It is also terminated if you send to your partner or your partner sends to you, by certified mail, a notice terminating the domestic partnership, or if you and your partner no longer share a common residence. In all cases, you are required to file a Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership.
If you do not terminate your domestic partnership before January 1, 2005, as provided above, you will be subject to these new rights and responsibilities and, under certain circumstances, you will only be able to terminate your domestic partnership, other than as a result of domestic partner’s death, by the filing of a court action.
If you have any questions about any of these changes, please consult an attorney. If you cannot find an attorney in your locale, please contact your county bar association for a referral.
Sincerely,
The Secretary of State”
(b) From January 1, 2004, to December 31, 2004, inclusive, the Secretary of State shall provide the following notice with all requests for the Declaration of Domestic Partnership form. The Secretary of State also shall attach the Notice to the Declaration of Domestic Partnership form that is provided to the general public on the Secretary of State’s Web site:

“NOTICE TO POTENTIAL DOMESTIC PARTNER REGISTRANTS

As of January 1, 2005, California’s law of domestic partnership will change.
Beginning at that time, for purposes of California law, domestic partners will have a great many new rights and responsibilities, including laws governing community property, those governing property transfer, those regarding duties of mutual financial support and mutual responsibilities for certain debts to third parties, and many others. The way domestic partnerships are terminated will also change. Unlike current law, which allows partners to end their partnership simply by filing a “Termination of Domestic Partnership” form with the Secretary of State, after January 1, 2005, it will be necessary under certain circumstances to participate in a dissolution proceeding in court to end a domestic partnership.
If you have questions about these changes, please consult an attorney. If you cannot find an attorney in your area, please contact your county bar association for a referral.”

SEC. 11.

 Section 299.5 of the Family Code is repealed.

SEC. 12.

 Section 14771 of the Government Code is amended to read:

14771.
 (a) The director, through the forms management center, shall do all of the following:
(1) Establish a State Forms Management Program for all state agencies, and provide assistance in establishing internal forms management capabilities.
(2) Study, develop, coordinate and initiate forms of interagency and common administrative usage, and establish basic state design and specification criteria to effect the standardization of public-use forms.
(3) Provide assistance to state agencies for economical forms design and forms art work composition and establish and supervise control procedures to prevent the undue creation and reproduction of public-use forms.
(4) Provide assistance, training, and instruction in forms management techniques to state agencies, forms management representatives, and departmental forms coordinators, and provide direct administrative and forms management assistance to new state organizations as they are created.
(5) Maintain a central cross index of public-use forms to facilitate the standardization of these forms, to eliminate redundant forms, and to provide a central source of information on the usage and availability of forms.
(6) Utilize appropriate procurement techniques to take advantage of competitive bidding, consolidated orders, and contract procurement of forms, and work directly with the Office of State Publishing toward more efficient, economical and timely procurement, receipt, storage, and distribution of state forms.
(7) Coordinate the forms management program with the existing state archives and records management program to ensure timely disposition of outdated forms and related records.
(8) Conduct periodic evaluations of the effectiveness of the overall forms management program and the forms management practices of the individual state agencies, and maintain records which indicate net dollar savings which have been realized through centralized forms management.
(9) Develop and promulgate rules and standards to implement the overall purposes of this section.
(10) Create and maintain by July 1, 1986, a complete and comprehensive inventory of public-use forms in current use by the state.
(11) Establish and maintain, by July 1, 1986, an index of all public-use forms in current use by the state.
(12) Assign, by January 1, 1987, a control number to all public-use forms in current use by the state.
(13) Establish a goal to reduce the existing burden of state collections of public information by 30 percent by July 1, 1987, and to reduce that burden by an additional 15 percent by July 1, 1988.
(14) Provide notice to state agencies, forms management representatives, and departmental forms coordinators, that in the usual course of reviewing and revising all public-use forms that refer to or use the terms spouse, husband, wife, father, mother, marriage, or marital status, that appropriate references to domestic partner, parent, or domestic partnership are to be included.
(15) Delegate implementing authority to state agencies where the delegation will result in the most timely and economical method of accomplishing the responsibilities set forth in this section.
The director, through the forms management center, may require any agency to revise any public-use form which the director determines is inefficient.
(b) Due to the need for tax forms to be available to the public on a timely basis, all tax forms, including returns, schedules, notices, and instructions prepared by the Franchise Tax Board for public use in connection with its administration of the Personal Income Tax Law, Senior Citizens Property Tax Assistance and Postponement Law, Bank and Corporation Tax Law, and the Political Reform Act of 1974 and the State Board of Equalization’s administration of county assessment standards, state-assessed property, timber tax, sales and use tax, hazardous substances tax, alcoholic beverage tax, cigarette tax, motor vehicle fuel license tax, use fuel tax, energy resources surcharge, emergency telephone users surcharge, insurance tax, and universal telephone service tax shall be exempt from subdivision (a), and, instead, each board shall do all of the following:
(1) Establish a goal to standardize, consolidate, simplify, efficiently manage, and, where possible, reduce the number of tax forms.
(2) Create and maintain, by July 1, 1986, a complete and comprehensive inventory of tax forms in current use by the board.
(3) Establish and maintain, by July 1, 1986, an index of all tax forms in current use by the board.
(4) Report to the Legislature, by January 1, 1987, on its progress to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of all tax forms.
(c) The director, through the forms management center, shall develop and maintain, by December 31, 1995, an ongoing master inventory of all nontax reporting forms required of businesses by state agencies, including a schedule for notifying each state agency of the impending expiration of certain report review requirements pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 14775.

SEC. 13.

 Section 3 of Chapter 447 of the Statutes of 2002 is amended to read:
Sec. 3.On or before March 1, 2003, the Secretary of State shall send the following letter to the mailing address on file of each registered domestic partner who registered prior to January 1, 2003:
“Dear Registered Domestic Partner:
This letter is being sent to all persons who have registered with the Secretary of State as a domestic partner.
As of July 1, 2003, California’s law of intestate succession will change. The intestate succession law specifies what happens to a person’s property when that person dies without a will, trust, or other estate plan.
Under existing law, if a domestic partner dies without a will, trust, or other estate plan, a surviving domestic partner cannot inherit any of the deceased partner’s separate property. Instead, surviving relatives, including, for example, children, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, or parents may inherit the deceased partner’s separate property.
Under the law to take effect July 1, 2003, if a domestic partner dies without a will, trust, or other estate plan, the surviving domestic partner will inherit the deceased partner’s separate property in the same manner as a surviving spouse. This change will mean that the surviving domestic partner would inherit a third, a half, or all of the deceased partner’s separate property, depending on whether the deceased domestic partner has surviving children or other relatives. This change does not affect any community or quasi-community property that the deceased partner may have had.
This change in the intestate succession law will not affect you if you have a will, trust, or other estate plan.
If you do not have a will, trust, or other estate plan and you do not wish to have your domestic partner inherit your separate property in the manner provided by the revised law, you may prepare a will, trust, or other estate plan, or terminate your domestic partnership.
Under existing law, your domestic partnership is automatically terminated if you or your partner married or died while you were registered as domestic partners. It is also terminated by you sending your partner or your partner sending to you by certified mail a notice terminating the domestic partnership, or by you and your partner no longer sharing a common residence. In all cases, you are required to file a Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership with the Secretary of State in order to establish the actual date of termination of the domestic partnership. You can obtain a Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership from the Secretary of State’s office.
If your domestic partnership has terminated because you sent your partner or your partner sent to you a notice of termination of your domestic partnership, you must immediately file a Notice of Termination of Domestic Partnership. If you do not file that notice, your former domestic partner may inherit under the new law. However, if your domestic partnership has terminated because you or your partner married or you and your partner no longer share a common residence, neither you nor your former partner may inherit from the other under this new law.
If you have any questions about this change, please consult an estate planning attorney. If you cannot find an estate planning attorney in your locale, please contact your county bar association for a referral.

Sincerely,
The Secretary of State”

SEC. 14.

 The provisions of Sections 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 11 of this act shall become operative on January 1, 2005.

SEC. 15.

 This act shall be construed liberally in order to secure to eligible couples who register as domestic partners the full range of legal rights, protections and benefits, as well as all of the responsibilities, obligations, and duties to each other, to their children, to third parties and to the state, as the laws of California extend to and impose upon spouses.

SEC. 16.

 The provisions of this act are severable. If any provision of this act is held to be invalid, or if any application thereof to any person or circumstance is held to be invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that may be given effect without the invalid provision or application.

SEC. 17.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution for certain costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district because in that regard this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.
However, notwithstanding Section 17610 of the Government Code, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains other costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code. If the statewide cost of the claim for reimbursement does not exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000), reimbursement shall be made from the State Mandates Claims Fund.