Untying the knot will be a little more difficult in Texas if one lawmaker gets his way. State Rep. Matt Krause (R-Fort Worth) has filed two bills aimed at reducing the number of divorces in the Lone Star State. HB 93 is aimed at ending the decades-old practice of "no-foul" or "insupportabilty" divorce filings in Texas. That means that couples would have to state specific reasons when filing for divorce, like abuse, adultery, etc. Krause is also championing HB 65, which extends the waiting period for a divorce from 60 days to 180 days for couples with children under 18.
Krause tells KTRH his legislation is pro-family, because divorces have become too easy and their impact has been harmful to our society. "We felt like it would be a good thing to further strengthen the institute of marriage and the underlying unit of the family, to get rid of the insupportability plank of our divorce statutes," he says. "We've been hearing stories from people all across the political spectrum all across the state saying this was gravely detrimental to my family, my kids and myself...we're still reeling from the unilateral no-fault divorce that we were forced into."
Critics warn that ending no-fault or no-foul divorces could have the opposite of Krause's intended effect and actually harm children further, because couples would be forced to air more grievances against each other in public. Krause has heard those concerns. "I can certainly understand wanting to keep children from hearing certain things about one of their parents, but I also know the untold devastation that's played out in families because of unilateral no-fault divorce," he says.
The bottom line, according to Krause, is to strengthen the bond of marriage vows and ensure that people enter into them seriously. "What we need to do is have a set of public policy principles that we're aspiring to that not only strengthens the family but venerates the sanctity of marriage," he says.te