N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 15

§ 15. Duty of town and city clerks. 1. (a) It shall be the duty of the\ntown or city clerk when an application for a marriage license is made to\nhim or her to require each of the contracting parties to sign and verify\na statement or affidavit before such clerk or one of his or her\ndeputies, containing the following information. From the groom: Full\nname of husband, place of residence, social security number, age,\noccupation, place of birth, name of father, country of birth, maiden\nname of mother, country of birth, number of marriage. From the bride:\nFull name of bride, place of residence, social security number, age,\noccupation, place of birth, name of father, country of birth, maiden\nname of mother, country of birth, number of marriage. The said clerk\nshall also embody in the statement if either or both of the applicants\nhave been previously married, a statement as to whether the former\nhusband or husbands or the former wife or wives of the respective\napplicants are living or dead and as to whether either or both of said\napplicants are divorced persons, if so, when and where and against whom\nthe divorce or divorces were granted and shall also embody therein a\nstatement that no legal impediment exists as to the right of each of the\napplicants to enter into the marriage state. The town or city clerk is\nhereby given full power and authority to administer oaths and may\nrequire the applicants to produce witnesses to identify them or either\nof them and may examine under oath or otherwise other witnesses as to\nany material inquiry pertaining to the issuing of the license, and if\nthe applicant is a divorced person the clerk may also require the\nproduction of a certified copy of the decree of the divorce, or proof of\nan existing marriage of parties who apply for a license to be used for a\nsecond or subsequent ceremony; provided, however, that in cities or\ntowns the verified statements and affidavits may be made before any\nregular clerk or designee of the clerk's office.\n (b) Every application for a marriage license shall contain a statement\nto the following effect:\n NOTICE TO APPLICANTS\n (1) Every person has the right to adopt any name by which he or she\nwishes to be known simply by using that name consistently and without\nintent to defraud.\n (2) A person's last name (surname) does not automatically change upon\nmarriage, and neither party to the marriage must change his or her last\nname. Parties to a marriage need not have the same last name.\n (3) One or both parties to a marriage may elect to change the surname\nby which he or she wishes to be known after the solemnization of the\nmarriage by entering the new name in the space below. Such entry shall\nconsist of one of the following surnames:\n (i) the surname of the other spouse; or\n (ii) any former surname of either spouse; or\n (iii) a name combining into a single surname all or a segment of the\npremarriage surname or any former surname of each spouse; or\n (iv) a combination name separated by a hyphen, provided that each part\nof such combination surname is the premarriage surname, or any former\nsurname, of each of the spouses.\n (4) The use of this option will have the effect of providing a record\nof the change of name. The marriage certificate, containing the new\nname, if any, constitutes proof that the use of the new name, or the\nretention of the former name, is lawful.\n (5) Neither the use of, nor the failure to use, this option of\nselecting a new surname by means of this application abrogates the right\nof each person to adopt a different name through usage at some future\ndate.\n .....................................\n (Optional -- Enter new surname above)\n 2. If it appears from the affidavits and statements so taken, that the\npersons for whose marriage the license in question is demanded are\nlegally competent to marry, the said clerk shall issue such license\nexcept in the following cases. If it shall appear upon an application\nthat the applicant is under eighteen years of age, before the town or\ncity clerk shall issue a license, he shall require documentary proof of\nage in the form of an original or certified copy of a birth record, a\ncertification of birth issued by the state department of health, a local\nregistrar of vital statistics or other public officer charged with\nsimilar duties by the laws of any other state, territory or country, a\nbaptismal record, passport, automobile driver's license, life insurance\npolicy, employment certificate, school record, immigration record,\nnaturalization record or court record, showing the date of birth of such\nminor. If the town or city clerk shall be in doubt as to whether an\napplicant claiming to be over eighteen years of age is actually over\neighteen years of age, he shall, before issuing such license, require\ndocumentary proof as above defined. If it shall appear upon an\napplication of the applicants as provided in this section or upon\ninformation required by the clerk that either party is at least sixteen\nyears of age but under eighteen years of age, then the town or city\nclerk before he shall issue a license shall require the written consent\nto the marriage from both parents of the minor or minors or such as\nshall then be living, or if the parents of both are dead, then the\nwritten consent of the guardian or guardians of such minor or minors. If\none of the parents has been missing and has not been seen or heard from\nfor a period of one year preceding the time of the application for the\nlicense, although diligent inquiry has been made to learn the\nwhereabouts of such parent, the town or city clerk may issue a license\nto such minor upon the sworn statement and consent of the other parent.\nIf the marriage of the parents of such minor has been dissolved by\ndecree of divorce or annulment, the consent of the parent to whom the\ncourt which granted the decree has awarded the custody of such minor\nshall be sufficient. If there is no parent or guardian of the minor or\nminors living to their knowledge then the town or city clerk shall\nrequire the written consent to the marriage of the person under whose\ncare or government the minor or minors may be before a license shall be\nissued. If a parent of such minor has been adjudicated an incompetent,\nthe town or city clerk may issue a license to such minor upon the\nproduction of a certified copy of such judgment so determining and upon\nthe written consent of the other parent. If there is no other parent\nwhose consent is required by this section, then and in such event, the\ntown or city clerk shall require the written consent of the guardian of\nsuch minor or of the person under whose care or government the minor may\nbe before a license shall be issued. The parents, guardians, or other\npersons whose consent it shall be necessary to obtain and file with the\ntown or city clerk before the license shall issue, shall personally\nappear and acknowledge or execute the same before the town or city\nclerk, or some other officer authorized to administer oaths and take\nacknowledgments provided that where such affidavit or acknowledgment is\nmade before an official other than an officer designated in section two\nhundred ninety-eight of the real property law as authorized to take such\naffidavit or acknowledgment if a conveyance of real property were being\nacknowledged or proved, or if a certificate of authentication would be\nrequired by section three hundred ten of the real property law to\nentitle the instrument to be recorded if it were a conveyance of real\nproperty, the consent when filed must have attached thereto a\ncertificate of authentication.\n 3. If it shall appear upon an application for a marriage license that\neither party is under the age of sixteen years, the town or city clerk\nshall require, in addition to any consents provided for in this section,\nthe written approval and consent of a justice of the supreme court or of\na judge of the family court, having jurisdiction over the town or city\nin which the application is made, to be attached to or endorsed upon the\napplication, before the license is issued. The application for such\napproval and consent shall be heard by the judge at chambers. All papers\nand records pertaining to any such application shall be sealed by him\nand withheld from inspection, except by order of a court of competent\njurisdiction. Before issuing any licenses herein provided for, the town\nor city clerk shall be entitled to a fee of thirty dollars, which sum\nshall be paid by the applicants before or at the time the license is\nissued. Any town or city clerk who shall issue a license to marry any\npersons one or both of whom shall not be at the time of the marriage\nunder such license legally competent to marry without first requiring\nthe parties to such marriage to make such affidavits and statements or\nwho shall not require the production of documentary proof of age or the\nprocuring of the approval and consents provided for by this article,\nwhich shall show that the parties authorized by said license to be\nmarried are legally competent to marry, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor\nand on conviction thereof shall be fined in the sum of one hundred\ndollars for each and every offense. On or before the fifteenth day of\neach month, each town and city clerk, except in the city of New York,\nshall transmit to the state commissioner of health twenty-two dollars\nand fifty cents of the amount received for each fee collected, which\nshall be paid into the vital records management account as provided by\nsection ninety-seven-cccc of the state finance law. In any city the\nbalance of all fees collected for the issuing of a marriage license, or\nfor solemnizing a marriage, so far as collected for services rendered by\nany officer or employee of such city, shall be paid monthly into the\ncity treasury and may by ordinance be credited to any fund therein\ndesignated, and said ordinance, when duly enacted, shall have the force\nof law in such city. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this\narticle, the clerk of any city with the approval of the governing body\nof such city is hereby authorized to designate, in writing filed in the\ncity clerk's office, a deputy clerk, if any, and/or other city employees\nin such office to receive applications for, examine applications,\ninvestigate and issue marriage licenses in the absence or inability of\nthe clerk of said city to act, and said deputy and/or employees so\ndesignated are hereby vested with all the powers and duties of said city\nclerk relative thereto. Such deputy and/or employees shall perform said\nduties without additional compensation.\n 4. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the city clerk\nof the city of New York, before issuing any licenses herein provided\nfor, shall be entitled to a fee of twenty-five dollars, which sum shall\nbe paid by the applicants before or at the time the license is issued\nand all such fees so received shall be paid monthly into the city\ntreasury.\n