Same-Sex Couple Goes From 'Civil Union' To Married in Portsmouth

At least one Portsmouth couple will tie the knot thanks to the legalization of same-sex marriage in the Ocean State, but you won't be hearing their name anytime soon. 

Portsmouth Town Clerk employees say one couple applied to "merge" their civil union to a marriage on Thursday, when same-sex marriages officially became legal in Rhode Island. 

Merging into a marriage 

Under the new Marriage Equality Law, which became effective on Aug. 1, same-sex couples previously entered into a civil union are asked to merge the civil union into a marriage. Couples can also have the civil union legally designated and recorded as a marriage. 

To merge the civil union into a marriage, the couple must: 

• Apply for a marriage license.

• The parties to the marriage must be the same parties to the civil union for the civil union to be merged into a marriage;

• Both persons must also complete and sign an “Application To Merge Rhode Island Civil Union Into Marriage” form at the same city or town hall where they will be applying for a marriage license.

• The civil union will be merged into the marriage after the marriage is certificate is signed, returned by the officiant to the clerk where the marriage license was issued, and filed by that clerk.

For more information on merging a civil union into a marriage, visit the Department of Health Vital Records website here. 

Did you know marriage licenses are not public record? 

Did you know all marriage licenses and records are protected under Rhode Island's Vital Record Law? 

When it comes to public records, state laws vary on what information can be released to the public.

In Rhode Island, birth certificates, death certificates and marriage licenses all fall under the authority of the Department of Health thanks to the Vital Records law.

"Vital records are confidential. Only individuals who have what is called a 'direct and tangible interest' in the records can access them," according to the Department of Health website. 

In other words, the names of those same-sex couples who marry today will remain private and confidential, the same as any heterosexual couple applying for a marriage license. 

"It (the law) protects everyone," said a Tiverton Town Hall employee who asked to only go by the name Doris. "There's so many identity thefts today. That's one of the big reasons." 

The Department of Health's Vital Records Office is allowed to review applications and release records for "research purposes" under the law, but may also refuse the request. Each copy for a record costs $20. 

However, as with any law, there's an exception.

"Birth and marriage records 100 years or older and death records 50 years or older are considered public records and may be obtained from the city or town hall where the event happened or through the Rhode Island State Archives," according to the Department of Health website.