SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A push against underage marriage in the U.S. is coming to Utah, where a lawmaker wants to raise the legal marriage age to 18 to prevent girls from being pressured into the unions associated with higher poverty and lower education rates.
Rep. Angela Romero says she plans to complete her proposal for next year’s legislative session.
Jeanne Smoot with the Virginia-based Tahirih Justice Center said Friday more than 200,000 people under 18 have been married since the year 2000, but a growing number of states have reformed laws over the last two years.
In Utah, people as young as 15 can marry with court and parental permission.
State data show 253 people under age 18 married in 2010, the most recent year statewide figures are available.
