[HISTORY: Adopted 5-1-1995 ATM, Art. 36. Amendments noted where applicable.]
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 - Form A, Statement of Domestic PartnershipAttachment 2 - Form B, Statement of Terminating Domestic Partnership
A domestic partnership shall exist between any two (2) persons, regardless of their sex, if the following is true:
A. 
The persons are not related by blood closer than would bar marriage in the State of Massachusetts.
B. 
Neither person is married or related by marriage.
C. 
The persons share the common necessities of life.
D. 
The persons are eighteen (18) years old or older.
E. 
The persons are competent to enter a contract.
F. 
The persons declare that they are each other's sole domestic partner.
G. 
The persons are responsible for each other's sole domestic partner.
H. 
The persons agree to notify the Town of any change in the status of their domestic partnership.
I. 
Neither person has declared that he or she has a different domestic partner.
J. 
The persons file a statement of domestic partnership as set forth in § 87-2 of this chapter.
A. 
Contents.
(1) 
Domestic partners may make an official record of their domestic partnership by completing, signing and submitting to the Town Clerk a statement of domestic partnership. Persons submitting a statement of domestic partnership must declare under penalty of perjury;
(a) 
The persons are not related by blood closer than would bar marriage in the State of Massachusetts.
(b) 
Neither person is married or related by marriage.
(c) 
The persons share the common necessities of life.
(d) 
The persons are eighteen (18) years of age or older.
(e) 
The persons are competent to enter a contract.
(f) 
The persons declare that they are each other's sole domestic partner.
(g) 
The persons agree to be responsible for each other's welfare.
(h) 
The persons agree to notify the Town of any change in the status of their domestic partnership.
(i) 
Neither person has declared that he or she has a different domestic partner.
(2) 
The domestic partnership statement shall include the date on which the persons became each other's domestic partner and the address or addresses of both partners.
B. 
Amendment of domestic partnership statement. Partners may amend the statement at any time in order to change an address by filing a new statement.
C. 
Termination of domestic partnership. Any member of a domestic partnership may terminate the domestic partnership by filing a termination statement with the Town Clerk. The person filing the termination statement must declare under penalty of perjury that:
(1) 
The domestic partnership is terminated, and
(2) 
A copy of the termination statement has been mailed to the other domestic partner.
D. 
New statements of domestic partnership. No person who has filed an affidavit of domestic partnership may file another statement of domestic partnership until six (6) months after a statement of termination of a previous partnership has been filed with the Town Clerk.
A. 
Anyone who signs a statement of domestic partnership may not file another statement of domestic partnership until six (6) months after a statement of termination of a previous partnership has been filed with the Town Clerk.
B. 
Form of statements. All statements relating to domestic partnership shall be executed as a declaration made under penalty of perjury. The Town Clerk shall provide forms as necessary to interested individuals.
C. 
Fees for statements.
(1) 
The Town Clerk shall charge a fee for filing a domestic partnership statement, a termination of domestic partnership statement and for an amendment to a domestic partnership statement. The amount of this fee shall be determined by the Town Clerk.
(2) 
Payment of the above fee entitles the person filing a statement on behalf of the domestic partnership to have two (2) copies of the statement certified by the Town Clerk. Certification of additional copies at the time of filing shall cost an amount per copy to be determined by the Town Clerk. Certification of additional copies at any other time shall cost an amount per copy to be determined by the Town Clerk.
The Town Clerk shall maintain adequate records of domestic partnership statements, showing which domestic partnerships have been created, terminated or amended.
Any person defrauded by a false statement contained in a statement may bring a civil action for fraud to recover his or her losses.
The following forms[1] shall be sufficient proof of the creation or termination of domestic partnership.
[1]
Editor's Note: Forms are located at the end of this chapter.