WEST CAPE MAY – The Division on Civil Rights (DCR) in the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office issued notices of violation to 28 municipalities, including West Cape May.
According to the DCR, the violation notices were sent to communities that allegedly violated the laws against discrimination by publishing marriage license application forms on their websites that excluded “certain LGBTQIA+” individuals seeking a marriage license.
The forms that allegedly violated state law required individuals to either identify as a male or a female under oath. No option was available for individuals who consider themselves nonbinary or others with undesignated or unspecific gender identities.
The DCR says that the action taken is part of DCR’s Marriage Equality Enforcement Initiative, which was launched in October 2022.
A check of the West Cape May website March 9, one day after a press release was issued by the attorney general’s office, shows that the borough now lists the marriage license application developed by the state Department of Health (DOH), which contains an “undesignated/nonbinary” option for gender.
The West Cape May website also states, “Marriage licenses are available to qualifying couples of all gender compositions, including applicants seeking marriage licenses for same-gender or ‘same-sex’ marriages and nonbinary applicants.”
