{"id":197546,"date":"2026-03-19T09:16:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T09:16:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/197546\/"},"modified":"2026-03-19T09:16:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T09:16:07","slug":"florida-lawmakers-fail-to-pass-ban-on-marrying-cousins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/197546\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida lawmakers fail to pass ban on marrying cousins"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">TALLAHASSEE, Fla. \u2013 With the end of the latest Legislative session, some noteworthy bills have now perished \u2014 including one that would have prohibited people from marrying their cousins.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">That bill \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.flhouse.gov\/Sections\/Bills\/billsdetail.aspx?BillId=83366\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.flhouse.gov\/Sections\/Bills\/billsdetail.aspx?BillId=83366\">HB 733<\/a> \u2014 was first filed back in December by state Rep. Anne Gerwig (R-Greenacres), though it deals with a lot more than just marriage.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">[BELOW: Are you a \u2018gang member?\u2019 This new Florida bill changes what it means]<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">In fact, the bill aimed for a variety of changes involving the Department of Health and Florida\u2019s healthcare workforce. Those rules include the following:<\/p>\n<p>Revises the definition of \u201clow-THC cannabis\u201d to include all forms of cannabis products, except edibles<\/p>\n<p>Requires the FDOH to develop an educational pamphlet on neonate nutrition for parents<\/p>\n<p>Extends degree deadline dates for marriage and family therapist licensure requirements<\/p>\n<p>Allows licensed dental hygienists to use dental diode lasers under the direct supervision of a dentist<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">[BELOW: Disturbing discoveries at Sanford home spark 100 charges]<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">However, a smaller provision included in the bill sought to prohibit marriage between first cousins. The specific text included in the bill is as follows:<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 ewwUYq\">\u201cA man may not marry any woman who is a lineal descendant of his grandparent. A woman may not marry any man who is a lineal descendant of her grandparent. Marriages included in this subsection entered into after July 1, 2026, are not recognized for any purpose in this state.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>HB 733 (2026)<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Current law <a href=\"https:\/\/www.leg.state.fl.us\/statutes\/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&amp;Search_String=&amp;URL=0700-0799\/0741\/Sections\/0741.21.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.leg.state.fl.us\/statutes\/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&amp;Search_String=&amp;URL=0700-0799\/0741\/Sections\/0741.21.html\">already prohibits incestuous marriages<\/a>, such as those between siblings, parents, nieces, nephews, and grandparents. HB 733 would have simply added first cousins to that list.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">While the bill was unanimously approved by the state Senate last week, it died after returning back to the House.<\/p>\n<p>Breaking News Alerts<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 kiwhtN\">Get breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox.<\/p>\n<p>Copyright 2026 by WKMG ClickOrlando &#8211; All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TALLAHASSEE, Fla. \u2013 With the end of the latest Legislative session, some noteworthy bills have now perished \u2014&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":197547,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,100,29,99,2546,232],"class_list":["post-197546","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-legislature","tag-florida-news","tag-politics","tag-strange-florida","tag-tallahassee"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197546","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=197546"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197546\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/197547"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=197546"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=197546"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=197546"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}