The state’s waiting period, which was enacted in 1911, was reduced from one year to six months in 1977.

The bill has bipartisan support, and Duchow said she’s optimistic it will pass, calling the proposal “common sense.” Sen. Janis Ringhand, D-Evansville, is the Senate version’s lead co-sponsor.

But a six-month waiting period could help prevent additional divorces, allows for proper reflection after a potentially traumatic divorce and protects children from the confusion of having to adjust to a parent’s new marriage too quickly after a divorce, said Julaine Appling, president of the conservative Wisconsin Family Action. Eliminating the waiting period would cheapen marriage, making it more about adult desires instead of raising a family, she said.

“The waiting period has good purpose,” Appling said. “It’s not punitive. It’s protective.”

She said she’d be less opposed to the proposal if it excluded parents with minor children. In 2014, more than 51 percent of divorces included marriages with children, according to the Wisconsin Department of Health Services.

Between 2010 and 2014, Wisconsin had an average divorce rate of nearly 2.9 for every 1,000 persons, lower than the national rate of 3.4 during the same span, according to the department.