Michigan House Takes Action on Child Marriage and Hate Crimes

The Michigan House has passed a 10-bill package that sets the legal age of marriage at no younger than 18, eliminating an exemption that allowed individuals between the ages of 16 and 18 to marry with parental consent. The bills will move next to the state Senate, which is expected to take up their own versions of the legislation Thursday. Michigan is one of about 42 states where child marriage is legal, and had roughly 5,000 children married between 2000 and 2021. The legislation does not apply retroactively to existing marriages in which individuals were under the age of 18 at the time.