Members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies spoke about the additional costs and indignities a person goes through to change their name last week in the Michigan House Judiciary Committee.

The legislation would remove some of the requirements placed on Michiganders when they change their name outside of marriage, as well as make it easier for a person to select the sex marker they feel is appropriate for them on their birth certificate and driver’s license, including an “x” designation.

When a recently married person wants to change any element of their name on their driver’s license or state ID all they have to do is obtain a certified copy of their marriage certificate, alert the Social Security office to receive a new Social Security card and take the required identifying documents to their local Secretary of State branch office in order to receive a new driver’s license or state ID with the new name. The process typically costs under $50.

However, a person seeking a name change for any other reason has to go to court in Michigan. 

The person must file a petition for a name change in the appropriate local court in a county they have been a resident in for more than a year, which costs around $175 to file. If a person has any criminal record there is an automatic presumption of guilt of attempting fraud if they petition for a name change. Petitioners bear the burden of proof in court to rebut that presumption in court, which often requires the help of hiring legal representation.

Petitioners for a name change 22 years old and older are required to have two complete sets of their fingerprints taken at their local police station, costing about $40. Required materials, including the fingerprints are reviewed by the state police department and then the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Then petitioners for a name change have to publish notice of the court proceeding to change their name in a news outlet determined by the court for about $100 generally, noting the person’s current name, the name their petitioning for, and information about the proceeding in case a person wishes to contest the person’s name change.

About 78% of transgender adults in Michigan don’t have an ID that lists the correct gender for them, the highest percentage of any state, according to the Williams Institute in the University of California Los Angeles School Of Law. 

HB 5300 would allow a judge to bypass having a hearing to approve a name change if appropriate. If the judge requires a hearing, but the person seeking a name change has shown good cause that publication of the hearing could cause them harm, the judge is required to to not order publication. HB 5300 would also eliminate the automatic presumption of fraud for those petitioning for a name change that have a criminal record. Fingerprinting would also be eliminated.

House Bills 5301 and 5302 would codify two of current Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s policies. State law would eliminate the requirement to provide a birth certificate to change one’s sex marker on their driver’s license or state I.D. and state law would outline a person’s ability to choose a non-binary sex marker, an “X,” on their driver’s license or state I.D. as a non-binary sex designation.

These bills were voted out of the House Judiciary committee on February 14th, 8-4 following party lines.