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What year is it again?

Under an arcane law, hundreds of Floridians are being fined for living with a romantic partner sans government permission, thanks to an 1868 cohabitation statute that just happens to still be in effect.  The crime is punishable by a $500 fine and as much as 60 days in jail. Over 700 people have been charged with the misdemeanor in the last seven years alone, according to Raw Story.

A portion of the statute states:

If any man and woman, not being married to each other, lewdly and lasciviously associate and cohabit together, or if any man or woman, married or unmarried, engages in open and gross lewdness and lascivious behavior, they shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree.” 

Florida State Rep. Rehwinkel Vasilinda and Senator Eleanor Sobel have filed legislation that would repeal the law, reports Raw story. However, lawmakers have apparently proposed legislation to repeal the law before, but have failed.

SEE ALSO:  North Dakota Pastor’s Wife Fined For Praying Too Loudly

Apparently, as of 2011, more than a half million couples in Florida appear to be breaking the law if you believe the U.S. Census Bureau.

Florida Couples Can Be Arrested If Caught “Shacking Up”  was originally published on newsone.com