Kamal Ghorui
A bill aiming to ban marriage between first cousins failed to pass in the Florida Senate as the lawmakers ran out of time in the legislative session. State Representative Dean Black, who championed the bill, hoped that it would be taken up in near future by the lawmakers. “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,” Black told Action News Jax.The bill said: “A man may not marry any woman to whom he is related by lineal consanguinity…A woman may not marry any man to whom she is related by lineal consanguinity.” Incestuous marriages entered into after July 1 would not be recognized “for any purpose in this state,” if the legislation had passed, according to the bill’s text.Black said there were disagreements over other parts of the bill, which prevented the measure from passing before the session ended.Florida is one of 16 states with no limitations on marrying your first cousin. First cousins are those who share the same grandparents and from a biological perspective, they happen to share about 12.5% of their DNA.US states where it is fully legal to marry your cousinAlabamaAlaskaCaliforniaColoradoFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiMarylandMassachussettsNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth Carolina (except for double-first cousins)Rhode IslandSouth CarolinaVermontVirginiaWashington DCStates where you can marry your cousin under certain conditions:Arizona (both over 65, or one person infertile)Illinois (both over 50, or one person infertile)Indiana (both over 65)Maine (both same sex, or had genetic counselling)Minnesota (only native peoples)Utah (both over 65, or both over 55 and one person infertile)Wisconsin (woman is over 55, or one person infertile)States where you cannot marry your cousinArkansasDelawareIdahoKansasKentuckyLouisianaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaSouth DakotaTexasWashingtonWest VirginiaWyoming
