All right, soon-to-be-married Washingtonians. Let's go down the checklist. Something old and new? Check. Something borrowed and blue? Got it. But wait, did you remember to budget an extra $100 for your marriage license?
Washington’s marriage license fees increased by $100 statewide on Sunday — though the exact fee varies by county.
On a quiet Monday afternoon, Signe Lindquist and her fiancé, Griffin Cronk, went to the King County recorder's office in Seattle. They knew about the fee increase from a Reddit post, but were already planning to knock the marriage license off their to-do list before the price went up from $69 to $169.
For our life, (the fee increase) wouldn't make an impact," said Lindquist, 29. "We would still choose to get the license if it were $169 versus $69. But I'm wondering about what impacts (the increase) has on everyone."
The state Legislature voted in April to increase fees to create a new domestic violence grant program, where local governments can apply for funding for social workers to respond to 911 calls alongside police. The "co-responders" will be trained advocates who provide "whole family support, resource connection and care navigation for victims," the bill reads.
Cronk, 28, said the co-responder program "seems like a good use of funds."
Many police departments already provide pamphlets to domestic violence victims, something bill sponsor Rep. Lauren Davis, D-Shoreline, said isn't enough.
"Of persons who are killed (by domestic violence), less than 5% were ever engaged in victim services, but half had contacted law enforcement," she said.
As a domestic abuse survivor, Davis has witnessed gaps in the system firsthand.
"There appears to be this window of willingness when a victim may actually be willing to seek help or engage in services, and that typically occurs right after an incident of battering, and so we're missing those windows," she said.
The hope is that co-responders help more people to get out of abusive relationships.
Davis chose to increase marriage license fees because she wanted something with a "nexus" to domestic violence.
If you get your license in King County, $69 goes to the county records office and $100 is forwarded to the state for the new program.
Nationwide, 41% of women and 26% of men in the U.S. experience some form of intimate partner violence in their lifetimes, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2022.
Domestic violence offenses accounted for 47.9% of crimes against persons in Washington in 2023, according to the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs.
The state’s Office of Crime Victim Advocacy will oversee the grant program, with money expected to be issued by June 2026.
Elizabeth Montoya, a spokesperson for the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, said co-responders help police focus on their jobs while also not neglecting the needs of victims.
A nonprofit co-responder program already exists in South King County. Katya Wokcik and her partner, Joel, launched Project Be Free in 2020 to address the rise in domestic violence during the pandemic and what she considers to be inadequate training cops receive in the academy. The organization collaborates with Renton, Kent, Newcastle and Auburn police.
Wokcik said 83% of people choose to engage with their services, which include counseling, help with protection orders and more.
"I think it's important to note that domestic violence is oftentimes a cycle," Wokcik said. "… It's hard to make a decision on leaving a situation or wanting change in the situation when you're in crisis, and you don't know how to even formulate a plan for what's next."
Some soon-to-be-married couples in the state are torn about the increased fee. Matthew Albert, 24, of Seattle, is getting married in September.
"I'm really happy that more money's getting dedicated to (domestic violence resources), but at the same time, I feel like there's so many alternative sources where they could have pulled from," Albert said.
Marriage rates in Washington have steadily declined since 2014, according to the state Department of Health data.
About 5.5 per 1,000 Washingtonians got married in 2023, compared to 7.1 per 1,000 in 2014.
"The reality is people aren't going to stop getting married," she said. "This is not like eggs, right? When the price of eggs goes up, people buy less eggs."
The fee increases received bipartisan support in the Legislature, with 38 state senators voting for and 10 against. Davis hopes newlyweds see the increased fees as a partnership to help victims.
"We're quite literally talking about a life-saving intervention, Davis said.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, you can call, chat or text the 24/7 National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or 800-787-3224 (TTY). King County also has a 24-hour domestic violence hotline at 206-737-0242. More resources can be found at wscadv.org/get-help-now/.
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