Florida lawmakers have killed legislation that would have banned marriage between first cousins.
If it had become law, HB 733 would have withheld legal recognition from marriages between two lineal descendants of the same grandparent — that is, first cousins — effective July 1.
However, the bill had other sections dealing with student loan eligibility for dentists and dental hygienists, requirements for Florida Department of Health approval of qualified physicians and the directors of medical marijuana treatment centers, revising training for an autism program and establishing a grant for neurofibromatosis.
Disagreements over the other details ultimately sank the bill, killing it when the state legislative session ended Friday, according to the Florida Politics news platform.
State Rep. Dean Black, a Republican representing Yulee, Florida, about 25 miles north of Jacksonville, had added the section about preventing cousin marriages, according to WFOX-TV.
“There are plenty of people here, and there are plenty of people you can find to be your lifelong partner without looking to your first cousin. … I think it should come back whether it’s a stand-alone bill, whether it’s tagged onto some other bill,” Mr. Black told WFOX-TV.
