Mea culpa.
I never knew I was breaking the law. Honest.
Until today, I didn’t know that while I lived with the man who would become my husband, we were actually outlaws, living in violation of 1931 Michigan legislation that made cohabiting illegal.
I know what you’re thinking: you didn’t know there was such a law either. And I’m betting you didn’t know that the 1931 law also prohibited “any man or woman, married or unmarried, from engaging in open and gross lewdness and lascivious behavior.”
It’s a weird and old-fashioned provision, and there are only two states in the union with such a law: Michigan and Mississippi.
I’ll bet you’ll also be surprised to learn that on Wednesday state Sen. Lana Theis of Brighton was one of the nine Republican state senators who voted against removing that law — described as “essentially unenforced” by the nonpartisan Senate Fiscal Agency — from the books.
While not enforced, the law has tax implications for unmarried couples living together: federal law doesn’t allow for someone to claim another as a dependent if the relationship violates state law. If anyone were to enforce the 1931 law, each offense — which must be prosecuted before a year from the time of the violation — is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year imprisonment and/or a maximum fine of $1,000.
Theis joined fellow Sens. Thomas Albert of Lowell, Kevin Daley of Lum, John Damoose of Harbor Springs, Dan Lauwers of Brockway Township, Jonathan Lindsey of Allen, Ed McBroom of Vulcan, Jim Runestad of White Lake, and Roger Victory of Hudsonville in voting to keep in place the 1931 state law.
Removing the provision passed 29-9. The proposal now goes to the state House for consideration.
Let’s hope our legislators wisely put Michigan’s residents on a footing equal with the rest of the U.S.
