Dalia Cuevas is in the love business.
As co-owner of Tina’s Wedding Chapel in Van Nuys, she has been marrying couples at low cost for the past five years, after she and husband Alfredo took over the business from his mother, Tina Cuevas.
The owners, along with a coalition of other wedding officiants, fear a rate hike on L.A. County marriage license fees approved on Sept. 16 will drive away customers and severely impact their businesses.
Starting in mid-October, the increase in the cost of marriage licenses, civil wedding ceremonies and ceremony witness services go into effect. Dalia Cuevas and others in the wedding business spoke before the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, Sept. 23, to ask them to repeal the increases, reduce them, or delay them until more voices can be heard from stakeholders.
“It’s crazy how much they are raising it,” said Alfredo Cuevas. “They are raising it $135, which doesn’t make sense. It is unfortunate they are sticking it to all the citizens.”
Last week, the board voted to raise the cost of a standard marriage license from the current $91 to $176. The cost of a confidential marriage license will rise from $85 to $220, while a civil wedding ceremony fee will rise from $35 to $44, and the ceremony witness fee will jump from $20 to $26.
The new fees were approved by the board without discussion. The county reported this was the first increase in fees since 2009.
“The proposed fee increase is significant as approximately 42% of this increase is attributed to cost-of-living adjustments for L.A. County employees since 2009, with the remainder reflecting several operational enhancements and mandated changes that have significantly impacted workload and administrative costs,” wrote Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan in his letter to the board.
The fee increases in L.A. County will increase the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s annual revenue by roughly $5.1 million, according to Logan’s letter.
While those who perform these civil ceremonies are not the ones paying the fees, they are worried that the higher cost for their customers will either change their minds about nuptials, or drive them to neighboring counties where marriage licenses cost much less.
For example, the cost for a standard license in Orange County is $61 and $66 for a confidential marriage license. As notaries and ordained ministers performing civil ceremonies outside of a courthouse, the officiants only give confidential marriage licenses, which are sealed from the public. Under new fees, these will become more expensive than standard marriage licenses.
“Our clients are not going to pay that much money,” said Dalia Cuevas in an interview on Monday. “They can go to Orange County where the rates are much cheaper.”
Alan Katz, owner of The Cute Little Wedding Chapel in the Bixby Knolls neighborhood of Long Beach, said the raise in license fees hurts the wedding industry and could result in closure of their wedding chapels. This would have a ripple effect among nearby photographers, DJs, florists, and local hotels, he said.
“These higher fees will force many couples, particularly those with limited means, to leave Los Angeles County for more affordable options,” Katz wrote in an emailed response. Orange County is right next to Long Beach and thus couples choosing to get married in Orange County due to the higher L.A. County fees may impact his business the most.
“You run the risk of turning L.A. County from a celebrated wedding destination to a place couples avoid,” Dalia Cuevas told the board.
More and more couples are requesting the confidential marriage license, which will go to $220 — more than the standard marriage license. These include survivors of domestic violence, law enforcement officers and attorneys, said Katz. “Today people want protection for all sorts of reasons,” he added.
“By raising the confidential license fee dramatically, it places this vital protection out of reach for those who need it the most,” said Yen Min to the board.
The speakers caught the attention of Fourth District Supervisors Janice Hahn, who said the supervisors’ vote on Sept. 16 was done from the consent calendar, where there is no discussion and one vote for approval of many items.
She said she wanted to speak with Logan about “alternatives to enacting these particular fees.”
“They brought up some very interesting points and unintended consequences, particularly about the confidential licenses,” Hahn said. “I know I have a lot more questions about these fees.”
Dalia Cuevas said she was very happy that Hahn will be talking to Logan about the fee increases.
“Yes, I am so very hopeful,” she said after the meeting. “At least they can decrease the amounts to something more affordable.”
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