299.3
. (a) On or before June 30, 2004, and again on or before
December 1, 2004, and again on or before January 31, 2005, the
Secretary of State shall send the following letter to the mailing
address on file of each registered domestic partner who registered
more than one month prior to each of those dates: "Dear Registered
Domestic Partner:
This letter is being sent to all persons who have registered with
the Secretary of State as a domestic partner.
Effective January 1, 2005, California's law related to the rights
and responsibilities of registered domestic partners will change (or,
if you are receiving this letter after that date, the law has
changed, as of January 1, 2005). With this new legislation, for
purposes of California law, domestic partners will have a great many
new rights and responsibilities, including laws governing community
property, those governing property transfer, those regarding duties
of mutual financial support and mutual responsibilities for certain
debts to third parties, and many others. The way domestic
partnerships are terminated is also changing. After January 1, 2005,
under certain circumstances, it will be necessary to participate in a
dissolution proceeding in court to end a domestic partnership.
Domestic partners who do not wish to be subject to these new
rights and responsibilities MUST terminate their domestic partnership
before January 1, 2005. Under the law in effect until January 1,
2005, your domestic partnership is automatically terminated if you or
your partner marry or die while you are registered as domestic
partners. It is also terminated if you send to your partner or your
partner sends to you, by certified mail, a notice terminating the
domestic partnership, or if you and your partner no longer share a
common residence. In all cases, you are required to file a Notice of
Termination of Domestic Partnership.
If you do not terminate your domestic partnership before January
1, 2005, as provided above, you will be subject to these new rights
and responsibilities and, under certain circumstances, you will only
be able to terminate your domestic partnership, other than as a
result of your domestic partner's death, by the filing of a court
action.
Further, if you registered your domestic partnership with the
state prior to January 1, 2005, you have until June 30, 2005, to
enter into a written agreement with your domestic partner that will
be enforceable in the same manner as a premarital agreement under
California law, if you intend to be so governed.
If you have any questions about any of these changes, please
consult an attorney. If you cannot find an attorney in your locale,
please contact your county bar association for a
referral.Sincerely,The Secretary of State"
(b) From January 1, 2004, to December 31, 2004, inclusive, the
Secretary of State shall provide the following notice with all
requests for the Declaration of Domestic Partnership form. The
Secretary of State also shall attach the Notice to the Declaration of
Domestic Partnership form that is provided to the general public on
the Secretary of State's Web site:
"NOTICE TO POTENTIAL DOMESTIC PARTNER REGISTRANTS
As of January 1, 2005, California's law of domestic partnership
will change.
Beginning at that time, for purposes of California law, domestic
partners will have a great many new rights and responsibilities,
including laws governing community property, those governing property
transfer, those regarding duties of mutual financial support and
mutual responsibilities for certain debts to third parties, and many
others. The way domestic partnerships are terminated will also
change. Unlike current law, which allows partners to end their
partnership simply by filing a "Termination of Domestic Partnership"
form with the Secretary of State, after January 1, 2005, it will be
necessary under certain circumstances to participate in a dissolution
proceeding in court to end a domestic partnership.
If you have questions about these changes, please consult an
attorney. If you cannot find an attorney in your area, please contact
your county bar association for a referral."