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North Carolina is set to raise the minimum age of marriage from 14 to 16. Currently, girls as young as 14 can legally get married if they become pregnant and if a judge allows it. Boys can also legally marry the mother of their unborn child if a judge approves the marriage. Teens between the ages of 16 and 18 require parental permission to get married in the state.
Under a new law, which was passed unanimously by the Senate, the minimum age for all marriages is now 16. Marriages for people under the age of 18 still require parental approval or a sign-off from a judge. The legislation now heads to the desk of Governor Roy Cooper, who plans to sign it into law.
"While the legislation falls short of raising the age of marriage to 18, the governor supports this step toward ending child marriage in North Carolina and more protections for children," Mary Scott Winstead, a spokeswoman for the governor, said in a statement.
While most states have laws setting the minimum age of marriage to 18, 44 states have exceptions that children under 18 to married in certain circumstances. Once Cooper signs the new law, there will be just 12 states that allow children under the age of 16 to get married.