H. B. 3181
(By Delegates Fleischauer, Perdue, Foster,
Hatfield, Susman, Schadler and Brown)
[Introduced February 21, 2003; referred to the
Committee on Government Organization then Finance.]
A BILL to repeal sections eighteen, eighteen-a, and twenty-two,
article five, chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia,
one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; to amend and
reenact sections one, two, three, four, five, six, seven,
eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, twelve-a, twelve-b,
thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen-b,
nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-three, twenty-four,
twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight,
twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three,
thirty-four, and thirty-five of said article; to further amend
said article by adding thereto three new sections, designated
sections nineteen-a, thirty-a, and thirty-four-a, all relating
to definitions; vital statistics; statewide system;
establishment of section of vital statistics in bureau for
public health; rules of state department of health and human resources; appointment of state registrar of vital statistics;
duties of state registrar of vital statistics; enforcement of
article; provision of information to local health agencies;
offices; delegation; registration districts; appointment and
removal of local registrars, deputy local registrars and
subregistrars; duties of local registrars, deputy registrars,
and subregistrars; compensation of local registrars; payment
of fees to local registrars; content of certificates and
reports; birth registration generally; registration of infants
and minors with specified birth defects; notation on birth
records of missing children; infants of unknown parentage;
foundling registration; delayed registration of births;
judicial procedure to establish facts of birth; certificates
of adoption; certificates of birth following adoption,
legitimation, paternity acknowledgment and court determination
of paternity; limitation on use of social security numbers;
death registration; delayed registration of death; reports of
fetal death; authorization for disposition and disinterment
and reinterment permits; extension of time for filing
certificates of death; correction and amendment of vital
records; reproduction and preservation of records; disclosure
of information from vital records or vital reports; copies
from the system of vital statistics; fees for copies and
searches; persons required to keep records; duty to furnish information relative to vital events; matching of birth and
death certificates; penalties; uniform system of registration
of marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage; registration
of marriages; registration of divorces and annulments of
marriages; applicability to previously received certificates
and reports; and severability.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections eighteen, eighteen-a, and twenty-two, article
five, chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be repealed; that sections
one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven,
twelve, twelve-a, twelve-b, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen,
seventeen, eighteen-b, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-three,
twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight,
twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three,
thirty-four, and thirty-five of said article be amended and
reenacted; that said article be further amended by adding thereto
three new sections, designated sections nineteen-a, thirty-a, and
thirty-four-a, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. VITAL STATISTICS.
§16-5-1. Definitions.
As used in this article:
"Date of filing" means the date a vital record is accepted for
registration by the section of vital statistics of the state bureau for public health.
a. "Dead body" means a lifeless human body or parts of such
body or bones thereof from the state of which it reasonably may be
concluded that death recently occurred.
"Deputy local registrar" means a person appointed by and
working under the supervision of a local registrar in the discharge
of the vital statistics functions specified to be performed in and
for the county or other district of such local registrar.
b. "Fetal death" means death prior to the complete expulsion
or extraction from its mother of a product of human conception,
irrespective of the duration of pregnancy, such death being
indicated by the fact that after such expulsion or extraction the
fetus does not breathe or show any other evidence of life such as
beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord or definite
movement of voluntary muscles.
c. "Filing" means the presentation of a certificate, report or
other record provided for in this article, of a birth, death, fetal
death, adoption, marriage, divorce or annulment, and acceptance of
a vital record or report provided for in this article for
registration by the division section of vital statistics of the
state department bureau for public of health.
d. "Final disposition" means the burial, interment, cremation,
removal from the state, or other authorized disposition of a dead
body or fetus.
e. "Institution" means any establishment, public or private,
which provides inpatient or outpatient medical, surgical, or
diagnostic care or treatment, or nursing, custodial or domiciliary
care to two or more unrelated individuals or to which persons are
committed by law.
f. "Live birth" means the complete expulsion or extraction
from its mother of a product of human conception, irrespective of
the duration of pregnancy, which, after such expulsion or
extraction, breathes or shows any other evidence of life such as
beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord or definite
movement of voluntary muscles, whether or not the umbilical cord
has been cut or the placenta is attached.
"Local registrar" means the person appointed by the state
registrar of vital statistics for a county or other district to
perform the vital statistics functions specified to be performed in
and for such county or other district.
g. "Physician" means a person authorized or licensed to
practice medicine pursuant to article three or article fourteen,
chapter thirty of this code or osteopathy pursuant to the laws of
this state.
h. "Registration" means the acceptance by the division of
vital statistics, and the incorporation in its official records, of
certificates, reports, or other records provided for in this
article, of births, deaths, fetal deaths, adoptions, marriages, divorces and annulments.
"Registration" means the process by which vital records are
completed, filed, and incorporated into the official records of the
section of vital statistics.
"Subregistrar" means a person appointed, with the approval of
the state registrar of vital statistics, by and working under the
supervision of a local registrar in the discharge of the vital
statistics functions specified to be performed in and for the
county or other district of such local registrar.
i. "System of vital statistics" means the registration,
collection, preservation, amendment, certification of vital
statistics records; the collection of other reports required by
this article; and activities related thereto, including, but not
restricted to, the tabulation, analysis, publication, and
dissemination of statistical data derived from such records vital
statistics.
"Vital records" means certificates or reports and data related
to birth, death, and marriage, including divorce, dissolution of
marriage, and annulment.
"Vital reports" means reports of fetal death and other reports
designated in this article and rules promulgated thereunder and
data related thereto.
j. "Vital statistics" means records of birth, death, fetal
death, marriage, divorce, annulment and data related thereto the data derived from certificates and reports of birth, death, fetal
death, marriage, divorce, annulment and related reports.
k. "Local registrar" means the person appointed by the state
registrar of vital statistics for a county or other district to
perform the vital statistics functions specified to be performed in
and for such county or other district.
l. "Deputy local registrar" means a person appointed by and
working under the supervision of a local registrar in the discharge
of the vital statistics functions specified to be performed in and
for the county or other district of such local registrar.
m. "Subregistrar" means a person appointed, with the approval
of the state registrar of vital statistics, by and working under
the supervision of a local registrar in the discharge of the vital
statistics functions specified to be performed in and for the
county or other district of such local registrar.
§16-5-2. Vital statistics; statewide system; establishment of
section of vital statistics in division of bureau for
public health.
The director of the department of health shall have general
supervision over the system of vital statistics, which shall be
under the immediate supervision of the state registrar of vital
statistics. The director shall provide for such clerical and other
assistants as may be necessary for the purposes of this article.
Suitable offices shall be provided at the seat of state government and such offices shall be properly equipped with a fire-proof vault
and filing cases for the permanent and safe preservation of all
official records made, maintained or filed under the provisions of
this article.
There is hereby established in the state bureau for public
health a section of vital statistics which shall install, maintain,
and operate the only system of vital statistics throughout this
state. The section of vital statistics shall be provided with
sufficient staff, suitable offices provided with a fire-proof vault
and a non-liquid fire suppression system suitable for the
protection of paper records and magnetic media, and other resources
for the proper administration of the system of vital statistics and
for the preservation and security of its official records.
§16-5-3. Rules of state department of health and human resources.
The state board of health is authorized to adopt, amend and
repeal rules and regulations for the purpose of carrying out the
specific provisions of this article.
For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this
article, the department of health and human resources is authorized
to adopt, amend, and repeal rules in accordance with the provisions
of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code.
§16-5-4. Appointment of state registrar of vital statistics.
The state director of the department of health shall appoint
and prescribe the qualifications of the state registrar of vital statistics The commissioner of the bureau for public health shall
appoint, in accordance with applicable civil service laws and
rules, the state registrar of vital statistics, hereinafter
referred to as "state registrar."
§16-5-5. Duties of state registrar; enforcement of article;
provision of information to local health agencies;
offices; delegations.
a. (a) The state registrar of vital statistics shall:
(1) Administer and enforce the provisions of this article and
all other applicable laws of this state and all lawful rules and
regulations adopted and promulgated thereunder; the rules issued
hereunder and issue instructions for the efficient administration
of the system of vital statistics;
(2) Direct and supervise the statewide system of vital
statistics and the operation of the section of vital statistics,
and act as custodian of its records;
(3) Direct, supervise and control the activities of local
registrars and the activities of public officers in relation to the
operation of the vital statistics system and provide them with the
postage necessary for them to carry out their duties under this
article;
(3) Direct, supervise, and control the activities of all
persons when they are engaged in activities pertaining to the
operation of the system of vital statistics;
(4) Prescribe, provide and distribute, subject to the rules
and regulations promulgated by the board of health, all forms
necessary to carry out the provisions of this article and of the
rules and regulations adopted and promulgated thereunder; and
(4) Conduct training programs to promote uniformity of policy
and procedures throughout the state in matters pertaining to the
system of vital statistics;
(5) Prescribe, furnish, and distribute such forms as are
required by this article and the rules issued hereunder, or
prescribe such other means for transmission of data as will
accomplish the purpose of complete and accurate reporting and
registration;
(5) (6) Prepare and publish annual reports of vital statistics
of this state, and such other reports as may be required by the
director commissioner of the state bureau for public health;
department
(7) Provide to local health agencies copies of or data derived
from certificates and reports required under this article as he or
she shall determine are necessary for local health planning and
program activities. The state registrar shall establish a schedule
with each local health agency for transmittal of the copies or
data. The copies or data remain the property of the section of
vital statistics, and the uses that may be made of them are
governed by the state registrar; and
(8) Offer voluntary paternity establishment services.
b. The state registrar of vital statistics may delegate such
functions and duties as are hereby vested in him to officers and
employees of the division of vital statistics and to local
registrars as the state registrar may deem necessary or expedient.
(b) The state registrar may designate individuals in the state
as provided by rule to aid in the efficient administration of the
system of vital statistics.
(c) The state registrar may delegate such functions and duties
vested in him or her to employees of the section of vital
statistics and to individuals designated under subsection (b),
section five of this article.
c. (d) The state registrar, either personally or by a duly
delegated representative, shall have authority to investigate cases
of irregularity or violation of law arising under the provisions of
this article, and all local registrars, deputy local registrars and
subregistrars individuals designated under subsection (b), section
five of this article shall aid him or her, upon request, in such
investigations. When he or she shall deem it necessary, he or she
shall report cases of violation of any of the provisions of this
article to the prosecuting attorney of the county, with a statement
of the facts and circumstances. When any such case is reported to
him or her by the state registrar, the prosecuting attorney shall
forthwith initiate and promptly prosecute the necessary court proceedings against the person or corporation responsible for the
alleged violation of law. Upon request of the state registrar, the
attorney general shall assist in the enforcement of the provisions
of this article.
§16-5-6. Registration districts.
For the purposes of this article, subject to the rules and
regulations promulgated by the state board department of health and
human resources, the director commissioner of the state bureau for
public health department may establish registration districts
throughout the state. The director commissioner may eliminate, or
change the boundaries of, any district and may consolidate two or
more districts or subdivide any district to facilitate
registration.
§16-5-7. Appointment and removal of local registrars, deputy
local registrars and subregistrars.
a. (a) The state registrar of vital statistics shall appoint
a local registrar and the local registrar may appoint one or more
deputy local registrars of vital statistics for each registration
district.
b. (b) When it appears necessary for the convenience of the
people in any district the local registrar may, with the approval
of the state registrar, appoint one or more persons to act as
subregistrars.
c. (c) The state registrar may remove a local registrar, a deputy local registrar, or a local subregistrar for reasonable
cause.
§16-5-8. Duties of local registrars, deputy registrars and
subregistrars.
a. (a) A local registrar, with respect to his registration
district, shall:
(1) Administer and enforce the provisions of this article and
all instructions, rules and regulations adopted and promulgated
pursuant thereto;
(2) Require that certificates be completed and filed in
accordance with provisions of this article and the rules and
regulations adopted and promulgated pursuant thereto;
(3) Transmit, by mail or an approved electronic process, on
the first and fifteenth day of each month or as soon as possible
thereafter, the certificates, reports or other returns filed with
him or her to the state registrar, of vital statistics or transmit
the same more frequently when directed to do so by the state
registrar; and
(4) Maintain such records, make such reports and perform such
other duties as may be required by the state registrar. of vital
statistics
b. (b) In accordance with rules and regulations adopted and
promulgated pursuant to this article, the deputy local registrar
shall perform the duties of the local registrar in the absence or incapacity of such local registrar and shall perform such other
duties as may be prescribed.
c. (c) Subregistrars shall perform such duties as may be
prescribed by rules and regulations adopted and promulgated
pursuant to this article.
§16-5-9. Compensation of local registrars.
a. (a) Each local registrar shall be paid the sum of one
dollar for each certificate of birth, death, or fetal death
registered by him or her and transmitted to the state registrar of
vital statistics in accordance with the rules and regulations
adopted and promulgated pursuant to this article.
b. (b) If no birth, death or fetal death is registered by him
or her during any calendar month, the local registrar shall report
that fact to the state registrar of vital statistics and be paid
the sum of one dollar for such report.
c. (c) No compensation shall be paid under this section to any
full-time employee of any state or local governmental unit or body.
Where such employee is designated to serve, and serves, as a local
registrar, the compensation provided by this section shall be paid
to the governmental unit or body by which such local registrar is
employed.
(d) In the event that local registration districts have been
combined into one central registration district, as allowed in
section six of this article, and registration of births, deaths, and fetal deaths occur under the direct supervision of the state
registrar, subsection (a), subsection (b), and subsection (c) of
this section shall not apply.
§16-5-10. Payment of fees to local registrars.
(a) The state registrar of vital statistics shall certify at
the end of each quarter of the calendar year, to the county courts
commissions of the several counties, the number of births, fetal
deaths and deaths properly registered with the names of the local
registrars and the amounts due each. All amounts payable to a
local registrar under the provisions of this section shall be paid
by the treasurer of the county in which the registration district
is located, upon the order of the county court commission such
county issued upon such certification by the state registrar. of
vital statistics Where a local registrar is a full-time employee
of any state or local governmental unit or body, the state
registrar shall so state in his certification, and, in such case,
the county court commission shall make payment, pursuant to section
nine of this article, to the governmental unit or body by which
such registrar is employed.
(b)
In the event that local registration districts have been
combined into one central registration district, as allowed in
section six of this article, and registration of births, deaths,
and fetal deaths occur under the direct supervision of the state
registrar, subsection (a)of this section shall not apply.
§16-5-11. Content of certificates and reports.
a. (a) In order to promote and maintain uniformity in the
system of vital statistics, the forms of certificates, reports and
other returns required by this article, or by rules and regulations
adopted and promulgated thereunder, shall include as a minimum (in
addition to the items required by the laws of this state) the items
recommended by the federal agency responsible for national vital
statistics, subject to the approval of, and to modification by, the
state board bureau for public of health.
b. Each certificate, report and form required to be filed
under this article shall have entered upon its face the date of
registration, duly attested.
(b) Each certificate, report, and other document required by
this article shall be prepared in the format approved by the state
registrar.
(c) All vital records shall contain the date of filing.
(d) Information required in certificates, forms, records, or
reports authorized by this article may be filed, verified,
registered, and stored by photographic, electronic, or other means
as prescribed by the state registrar.
§16-5-12. Birth registration generally; acknowledgment of
paternity; rescission of paternity.
(a) A certificate of birth for each live birth which occurs in
this state shall be filed with the local registrar of the district in which the birth occurs within seven days after such birth and
shall be registered by such registrar if it has been completed and
filed in accordance with this section. When a birth occurs in a
moving conveyance, a birth certificate shall be filed in the
district in which the child is first removed from the conveyance.
When a birth occurs in a district other than where the mother
resides, a birth certificate shall be filed in the district in
which the child is born and in the district in which the mother
resides. A certificate of birth for each live birth which occurs
in this state shall be filed with the section of vital statistics,
or as otherwise directed by the state registrar, within five days
after such birth and shall be registered if it has been completed
and filed in accordance with this section.
(b) When a birth occurs in an institution, the person in
charge of the institution or his designated representative shall
obtain the personal data, prepare the certificate, secure the
signatures required for the certificate and file it with the local
registrar. The physician in attendance shall certify to the facts
of birth and provide the medical information required for the
certificate within five days after the birth. When a birth occurs
in an institution or en route thereto, the person in charge of the
institution or his or her authorized designee shall obtain all data
required by the certificate, prepare the certificate, certify that
the child was born alive at the place and time and on the date stated either by signature or by an approved electronic process and
file the certificate as directed in subsection (a.) of this
section. The physician or other person in attendance and the
physician, institution, or other person providing prenatal care
shall provide the medical information required by the certificate
within seventy-two hours after the birth.
(c) When a birth occurs outside an institution, the
certificate shall be prepared and filed by one of the following in
the indicated order of priority in accordance with rules
promulgated by the department of health and human resources:
(1) The physician in attendance at or immediately after the
birth, or in the absence of such a person;
(2) Any other person in attendance at or immediately after the
birth, or in the absence of such a person; or
(3) The father, the mother, or, in the absence of the father
and the inability of the mother, the person in charge of the
premises where the birth occurred.
(d) Either of the parents of the child shall sign the
certificate of live birth to attest to the accuracy of the personal
data entered thereon, in time to permit its filing within the seven
days prescribed above.
(4) The department of health and human resources shall by rule
determine the evidence required to establish the facts of birth.
(d) When a birth occurs on a moving conveyance within the United States and the child is first removed from the conveyance in
this state, the birth shall be registered in this state, and the
place where it is first removed shall be considered the place of
birth. When a birth occurs on a moving conveyance while in
international waters or air space or in a foreign country or its
air space and the child is first removed from the conveyance in
this state, the birth shall be registered in this state, but the
certificate shall show the actual place of birth insofar as can be
determined.
(e) For the purposes of birth registration, the mother is
deemed to be the woman who gives birth to the child, unless
otherwise specifically provided for by state law or determined by
a court of competent jurisdiction prior to the filing of the birth
certificate. The information about the father shall be entered as
provided in subsection (f) of this section.
(f)(1) If the mother was married either at the time of either
conception or birth, or between conception and birth, the name of
the husband shall be entered on the certificate as the father of
the child, unless: paternity has been determined otherwise by a
court of competent jurisdiction pursuant to the provisions of
article twenty-four, chapter forty-eight-of this code or other
applicable law, in which case the name of the father as determined
by the court shall be entered
(A) Paternity has been determined otherwise by a court of competent jurisdiction pursuant to the provisions of article
twenty-four, chapter forty-eight of this code or other applicable
law, in which case the name of the father as determined by the
court shall be entered; or
(B) The mother, her husband, and an alleged father
administratively acknowledge that the husband is not the biological
father and that the alleged father is the true biological father.
To do so, the following conditions must be met:
i. The mother executes an affidavit of nonpaternity attesting
that her husband is not the biological father of the child and that
another man is the biological father; and
ii. The man named as the alleged biological father executes an
affidavit of paternity attesting that he is the biological father;
and
iii. The husband executes an affidavit of nonpaternity
attesting that he is not the biological father; and
iv. Genetic testing shows that the alleged father is the
biological father of the child pursuant to the following
guidelines:
I. The tests shall show that the inherited characteristics,
including, but not limited to, blood types be determined by
appropriate testing procedures at a hospital, independent medical
institution or independent medical laboratory duly licensed under
the laws of this state, or any other state, and an expert qualified as an examiner of genetic markers shall analyze, interpret, and
report on the results; and
II. The blood or tissue results show a statistical probability
of paternity of more than ninety-eight percent.
v. Affidavits may be joint or individual or a combination
thereof, and each signature shall be individually notarized.
If
one of the parties is a minor, their parent or legal guardian must
also sign the respective affidavit.
vi. This provision may be used only when the husband's name
does not appear as the father of the child on a registered and
filed certificate of live birth and the affidavits and genetic
testing must be completed and submitted to the section of vital
statistics within one year of the date of birth of the child.
In the event of such affidavit or affidavits being executed
and genetic testing that verifies the alleged father as the
biological father, the alleged father shall be shown as the father
on the certificate of live birth. Paternity established under this
provision establishes the father for all legal purposes including,
but not limited to, the establishment and enforcement of child
support orders. Paternity established under this provision is not
subject to recission as stated in subsection (i.) of this section.
Paternity established under this provision is subject to judicial
recission only on the basis of fraud, duress, or material mistake
of fact.
(h) (2) If the mother was not married either at the time of
either conception or birth, or between conception and birth, the
name of the father shall not be entered on the certificate of birth
without the written consent of the mother and of the person to be
named as the father unless a determination of paternity has been
made by a court of competent jurisdiction pursuant to the
provisions of article twenty-four, chapter forty-eight-of this code
or other applicable law, in which case the name of the father as
determined by the court shall be entered an affidavit of paternity
signed by the mother and the person to be named as the father. The
affidavit may be joint or individual and each signature shall be
individually notarized
. Said affidavit of paternity is the same
instrument as the acknowledgment in subsection (i.) of this
section.
(3) In any case in which paternity of a child is determined by
a court of competent jurisdiction pursuant to the provisions of
article twenty-four, chapter forty-eight of this code or other
applicable law, the name of the father and surname of the child
shall be entered on the certificate of birth in accordance with the
finding and order of the court.
(4) If the father is not named on the certificate of birth, no
other information about the father shall be entered on the
certificate.
(f) (g) Either of the parents of the child shall sign the certificate of live birth to attest to the accuracy of the personal
data thereon, verify the accuracy of the personal data to be
entered on the certificate in time to permit its filing within the
seven five days prescribed above.
(h) Certificates of birth filed after five days, but within
one year from the date of birth shall be registered on the standard
form of the certificate of birth in the manner prescribed above.
Such certificates shall not be marked "Delayed." The state
registrar may require additional evidence in support of the facts
of birth.
(i) (i) A written, notarized acknowledgment of both the man
and the woman that the man is the father of a named child legally
establishes the man as the father of the child for all purposes,
and child support may be established pursuant to the provisions of
chapter forty-eight of this code.
(1) The written acknowledgment shall include filing
instructions, the parties' social security number and addresses and
a statement, given orally and in writing, of the alternatives to,
the legal consequences of, and the rights and obligations of
acknowledging paternity, including, but not limited to, the duty to
support a child. If either of the parents is a minor, the
statement shall include an explanation of any rights that may be
afforded due to the minority status.
(2) The failure or refusal to include all information required by subdivision (1) of this subsection shall not affect the validity
of the written acknowledgment, in the absence of a finding by a
court of competent jurisdiction that the acknowledgment was
obtained by fraud, duress or material mistake of fact, as provided
in subdivision (4) of this subsection.
(3) The original written acknowledgment should be filed with
the state registrar. of vital statistics Upon receipt of any
acknowledgment executed pursuant to this section, the registrar
shall forward the copy of the acknowledgment to the bureau for
child support enforcement. child support enforcement division and
the parents, if the address of the parents is known to the
registrar If a birth certificate for the child has been previously
issued which is incorrect or incomplete, a new birth certificate
shall be issued created and placed on file. The new birth
certificate shall not be marked amended.
(4) An acknowledgment executed under the provisions of this
subsection may be rescinded as follows:
(A) The parent wishing to rescind the acknowledgment shall
file with the clerk of the circuit court of the county in which the
child resides a verified complaint stating the name of the child,
the name of the other parent, the date of the birth of the child,
the date of the signing of the affidavit, and a statement that he
or she wishes to rescind the acknowledgment of the paternity. If
the complaint is filed more than sixty days from the date of execution or the date of an administrative or judicial proceeding
relating to the child in which the signatory is a party, the
complaint shall include specific allegations concerning the
elements of fraud, duress or material mistake of fact.
(B) The complaint shall be served upon the other parent as
provided in rule 4 of the West Virginia rules of civil procedure.
(C) The family law master court judge shall hold a hearing
within sixty days of the service of process upon the other parent.
If the complaint was filed within sixty days of the date the
acknowledgment of paternity was executed, the court shall order the
acknowledgment to be rescinded without any requirement of a showing
of fraud, duress, or material mistake of fact. If the complaint
was filed more than sixty days from the date of execution or the
date of an administrative or judicial proceeding relating to the
child in which the signatory is a party, the court may only set
aside the acknowledgment upon a finding, by clear and convincing
evidence, that the acknowledgment was executed under circumstances
of fraud, duress or material mistake of fact. The circuit clerk
shall forward a copy of any order entered pursuant to this
proceeding to the state registrar of vital statistics by certified
mail. Said order shall state all changes to be made, if any, to
the birth certificate. The birth certificate shall not be marked
amended.
(e) (j) In order that each county may have a complete record of the births occurring in said county, the local registrar shall
transmit by mail or an approved electronic process each month to
the county clerk of his or her each county the copies of the
certificates of all births occurring in said county or the data
extracted therefrom, from which copies the clerk shall compile a
record records of such births and shall enter the same in a
systematic and orderly way in a well-bound register of births,
which said register create an index to the birth records that shall
be a matter of public record. Provided, That such copies and
register shall not state that any child was either legitimate or
illegitimate The form of said register index of births shall be
prescribed by the state registrar. of vital statistics
(f) (k) On and after the first day of November, one thousand
nine hundred ninety, In addition to the personal data furnished
for the certificate of birth issued for a live birth in accordance
with the provisions of this section, a person whose name is to
appear on such certificate of birth as a parent shall
contemporaneously furnish to the person preparing and filing the
certificate of birth the social security account number (or
numbers, if the parent has more than one such number) issued to the
parent. A record of the social security number or numbers shall be
filed with the local registrar of the district in which the birth
occurs within seven five days after such birth, and the local
registrar shall transmit such number or numbers to the state registrar of vital statistics in the same manner as other personal
data is transmitted to the state registrar.
§16-5-12a. Registration of infants and minors born with specified
birth defects.
(a) When a live birth occurs, the physician or midwife in
attendance at, or present immediately after, the birth shall
examine the infant for any of the following birth defects:
(1) Anencephaly;
(2) Spina bifida;
(3) Hydrocephaly;
(4) Cleft palate;
(5) Total cleft lip;
(6) Esophageal atresia and atenosis;
(7) Rectal and anal atresia;
(8) Hypospadias;
(9) Reduction and deformity - upper limb;
10) Reduction and deformity - lower limb;
(11) Congenital dislocation of the hip;
(12) Down's syndrome;
(13) Visual impairments; and
(14) Others as may be requested by the director commissioner
of the bureau for public health.
(b) If any such impairment is found in an infant, and/or if
such impairment is found or in any subsequent examination of any minor which has not been previously diagnosed, the examining
physician, midwife or other health care provider licensed under
chapter thirty of the code shall within thirty days of the
examination make a report of the diagnosis to the state registrar
of vital statistics or other agency within the bureau for public
health as designated by the commissioner on forms provided by the
state registrar of vital statistics bureau for public health. The
report shall include the name of the child, the name or names of
the parents or parent or guardian, and a description of the
impairment, and other related information as specified by the
commissioner.
(c) The information received by the state registrar or other
agency within the bureau for public health as designated by the
commissioner
pursuant to this section pertaining to the identity of
the persons named shall be kept confidential: Provided, That if
consent of the parents, or if only one of the parents exists, of
the a parent or of the guardian is obtained, the state registrar or
other agency within the bureau for public health as designated by
the commissioner
may provide such information to the division of
public health, the division of human resources, the department of
education, the division of vocational rehabilitation, and the
school for the deaf and the blind federal, state, and local
government agencies so that such information can be utilized to
provide assistance or services for the benefit of the child.
(d) The commission on the hearing impaired as provided for in
section one, article fourteen, chapter five of this code shall
develop and provide a form, to every physician or midwife attending
a birth or providing medical care to a newborn infant, which
assists the physician or midwife in collecting information from the
infant's family about the infant's potential for a hearing
impairment. The form shall identify an infant with a hearing
impairment or at risk of developing a hearing impairment. For
purposes of this section, an infant with a hearing impairment is a
child at birth with a significant hearing loss which prevents the
acquisition of speech and language through normal channels. An
infant at risk of being hearing impaired is a child at birth who is
at a higher risk than normal of being hearing impaired due to one
or more of the following factors present at birth:
(1) Family history of a congenital hearing loss;
(2) Rubella or virus during pregnancy;
(3) Congenital ear, nose or throat anomalies;
(4) Below normal birth weight;
(5) Abnormal level of jaundice;
(6) Anoxia or apnea; and
(7) A low APGAR score derived from the evaluation of the
infant's color, muscle tone, reflexes, pulse rate and respiration.
(e) If any such hearing impairment or risk of hearing
impairment is found in an infant, and/or if such impairment or risk of hearing impairment is found in any subsequent examination of any
minor which has not been previously diagnosed, the examining
physician or midwife shall within thirty days of the examination
make a report of the diagnosis to the commission on the hearing
impaired on the forms provided by the commission on the hearing
impaired. The report shall include the name of the child, the name
or names of the parents or parent or guardian and a description of
the hearing impairment or of the risk of hearing impairment.
Upon receiving a report of the disappearance of any child born
in this state, the state registrar shall indicate in a clear and
conspicuous manner in the child's birth record or by an electronic
process that the child has been reported as missing, including the
title and location of the law-enforcement agency providing the
report. Upon receiving a request for any birth records containing
a report of the disappearance of any child, the state registrar
shall immediately notify the local law-enforcement agency which
provided the missing child report. The state registrar shall
transmit any relevant information concerning the applicant's
identity, address and other pertinent data immediately to the
relevant local law-enforcement agency. The state registrar shall
retain the original written request until notified of the missing
child's recovery or the child attains the age of eighteen. Upon
notification that any missing child has been recovered, the state registrar shall remove the report of the disappearance from the
child's birth record. The provisions of this section shall be
implemented by the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-three.
§16-5-13. Infants of unknown parentage; foundling registration.
a. (a) Whoever assumes the custody of a living live-born
infant of unknown parentage shall report, on a form and in the a
manner prescribed by the state registrar, of vital statistics,
within seven five days of the date of such assumption of custody,
to the local registrar of the district in which the child was found
the following information:
(1) The date and place city or county, or both, of finding;
(2) Sex color or race and approximate age birth date of child;
(3) Name and address of the persons with whom or the
institution with which the child has been placed for care; and
(4) Name given to the child by the custodian of the child; and
(4) (5) Other data required by rules and regulations adopted
and promulgated pursuant to this article the state registrar.
b. (b) The place where the child was found shall be entered as
the place of birth. and the date of birth shall be determined by
approximation
c. (c) A report registered under this section shall constitute
the certificate of birth for the infant child.
d. (d) If the child is identified and a certificate of birth is found or obtained, any the report registered under this section
shall be sealed and filed and may be opened only by order of a
court of record of competent jurisdiction or as may be provided by
lawful rule and regulation adopted and promulgated pursuant to this
article placed in a special file and shall not be subject to
inspection except upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction
or as provided by rule.
§16-5-14. Delayed registration of births.
(a) When the birth of a person born in this state has not been
registered within the time period provided in section twelve of
this article, a certificate may be filed in accordance with a
legislative rule promulgated by the state board of health in
accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code. Such certificate shall be registered subject to such
evidentiary requirements as the state board of health shall by rule
prescribe to substantiate the alleged facts of birth. When a
certificate of birth of a person born in West Virginia has not been
filed within one year, a delayed certificate of birth may be filed
in accordance with rules promulgated by the department of health
and human resources. No delayed certificate shall be registered
until the evidentiary requirements as specified in rules have been
met.
(b) Certificates A certificate of birth registered one year or
more after the date of occurrence shall be marked "Delayed" and shall show on their face the date of the delayed registration
registered on a delayed birth certificate of birth form, and it
shall show on its face the date of registration. The delayed
certificate shall contain a summary statement of the evidence
submitted in support of the delayed registration.
(c) A summary statement of the evidence submitted in support
of the delayed registration shall be endorsed on the certificate.
(c) No delayed birth certificate shall be registered for a
deceased person.
(d) (1) When an applicant as defined by rule does not submit
the minimum documentation required in the rules for delayed
registration or when the state registrar of vital statistics finds
reason has cause to question the validity or adequacy of the
certificate applicant's sworn statement or the documentary
evidence, and if the deficiencies are not corrected, the state
registrar of vital statistics shall not register the delayed
certificate of birth and shall advise the applicant. in writing of
the reasons for this action of his or her right to seek an order
from a court of competent jurisdiction.
(2) The state board department of health and human resources
may by legislative rule promulgated in accordance with the
provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code provide for the
dismissal of an application which is not actively prosecuted
pursued.
(e) On and after the first day of November, one thousand nine
hundred ninety, In addition to the required documentation and
other data furnished in an application for a delayed registration
of birth in accordance with the provisions of this section, a
person whose name is to appear on the certificate of birth as a
parent shall contemporaneously furnish with the application the
social security account number (or numbers, if the parent has more
than one such number) issued to the parent.
§16-5-15. Judicial procedure to establish facts of birth.
(a) If a delayed certificate of birth is refused under the
provisions of section fourteen of this article, a petition If the
state registrar refuses to file a certificate of birth under the
provisions of section twelve or fourteen of this article, a
petition signed and sworn to by the petitioner may be filed in the
circuit court of the county in which the petitioner resides or in
the circuit court of Kanawha County for an order establishing a
record of the date and place of the birth and the parentage of the
person whose birth is to be registered.
(b) Such petition shall be made on a form prescribed and
furnished or approved by the state registrar and shall allege:
(1) That the person for whom a delayed registration
certificate of birth is sought was born in this state;
(2) That no record certificate of birth of such person can be
found in the section of vital statistics office of the state or the office of any local custodian of birth records certificates;
(3) That diligent efforts by the petitioner have failed to
obtain the evidence required in accordance with section twelve or
fourteen of this article and of any rules and regulations adopted
and promulgated thereunder pursuant thereto;
(4) That the state registrar of vital statistics has refused
to register a delayed file a certificate of birth; and
(5) Such other allegations as may be required. by the court
(c) The petition shall be accompanied by a copy of the
statement of the state registrar reasons of the registration
official made in accordance with subsection (d)(1), section
sections twelve or fourteen of this article and by all documentary
evidence which was submitted to the registration official state
registrar in support of such registration.
(d) The court shall fix a time and place for hearing the
petition and shall require that the petitioner give the
registration official who refused to register the petitioner's
delayed certificate of birth state registrar not less than twenty
days' notice of said hearing. Such official The state registrar,
or his authorized representative, may appear and testify in the
proceeding.
(e) If the court finds from the evidence presented that the
person for whom a delayed certificate of birth is sought was born
in this state, it shall make findings as to the place and date of birth, parentage, and such other findings as the case may require
be required and shall issue an order, setting forth the information
required under the provisions of this article on a form prescribed
and furnished or approved by the state registrar, to establish a
record of birth. This order shall include the birth date data to
be registered, a summary statement description of the evidence
presented, and the date of the court's action.
(f) The clerk of the court shall forward each such order to
the state registrar of vital statistics not later than the tenth
day of the calendar month following the month in which it was
entered. Such order shall be registered by the state registrar of
vital statistics and shall constitute the court order record
certificate of birth. from which copies may be issued in
accordance with the provisions of this article
(g) Any judgment shall be final unless reversed, vacated or
modified on appeal, and any appeal shall be sought in the manner
and within the time provided by law for appeals in other civil
cases.
(h) On and after the first day of November, one thousand nine
hundred ninety, In addition to the evidence presented to establish
a record court order certificate of birth in accordance with the
provisions of this section, a person whose name is to appear on the
delayed court order certificate of birth as a parent shall furnish
to the clerk of the circuit court the social security account number (or numbers, if the parent has more than one such number)
issued to the parent. A record of the social security number or
numbers shall be forwarded to the state registrar of vital
statistics along with the order establishing a record court order
certificate of birth, as provided for in subsection (f) of this
section.
§16-5-16. Certificates of adoption.
(a) In conformance with the provisions of section ten,
article four, chapter forty-eight of this code, any court in this
state entering an order of adoption shall require the preparation
by the clerk of the court of a certificate of adoption on a form
prescribed and furnished by the state registrar of vital
statistics. Such certificate shall include the factual information
described in section ten, article four, chapter forty-eight of
this code; shall provide such additional information as may be
required under legislative rules duly adopted pursuant to this
article to establish a new certificate of birth of the person
adopted; shall identify the order of adoption; and shall be
certified by the clerk of court. For each adoption decreed by a
court of competent jurisdiction in this state, the court shall
require the preparation of a certificate of adoption on a form
prescribed and furnished by the state registrar. The certificate of
adoption: shall include such facts as are necessary to locate and
identify the certificate of birth of the person adopted or, in the case of a person who was born in a foreign country, evidence from
sources determined to be reliable by the court as to the date and
place of birth of such person; shall provide information necessary
to establish a new certificate of birth of the person adopted;
shall identify the order of adoption; and shall be certified by the
clerk of court.
(b) Information in the possession of the petitioner necessary
to prepare the certificate of adoption shall be pleaded in the
petition for adoption or shall be furnished to the clerk of the
court by the petitioner for adoption at the time the petition is
filed furnished by each petitioner for adoption or his or her
attorney. Any social service or welfare agency or other any person
concerned with the adoption shall supply the petitioner with such
information in the possession of such agency or person as may be
necessary to complete the certificate having knowledge of the facts
shall supply the court with such additional information as may be
necessary to complete the certificate of adoption. The provision
of such information shall be prerequisite to the issuance of a
final decree in the matter by the court.
(c) Whenever an adoption order or decree is amended, or
vacated, or annulled, the clerk of the court shall prepare a
certificate report thereof, which shall include such facts as are
necessary to identify the original adoption certificate of adoption
and the facts amended in the adoption order or decree which are required as shall be necessary to properly amend the birth record.
(d) Not later than the tenth day of each calendar month, the
clerk of the court shall forward to the state registrar of vital
statistics certificates of adoption a and report reports of all
orders or decrees of adoption and of annulments or amendments
thereof, entered in the preceding month, together with such related
certificates and reports as may be required under the provisions of
this article the state registrar shall require.
(e) When the state registrar of vital statistics shall receive
a record certificate of adoption, or of an annulment or an
amendment of an order or decree of adoption from a court for a
person born outside of this state, such record shall be forwarded
to the appropriate registration authority in the state of birth
report of annulment of adoption, or amendment of a decree of
adoption for a person born outside West Virginia, he or she shall
forward such certificate or report to the state registrar in the
state of birth.
(f) If the birth occurred in a foreign country, and the child
was not a citizen of the United States at the time of birth, the
state registrar shall prepare a "Certificate of Foreign Birth" as
provided by subsection (h), section seventeen of this article. If
the child was born in Canada, the state registrar shall also send
a copy of the certificate of adoption, report of annulment of
adoption, or amendment of a decree of adoption to the appropriate registration authority in that country.
(g) If the child was born in a foreign country but was a
citizen of the United States at the time of birth, the state
registrar shall not prepare a "Certificate of Foreign Birth" but
shall notify the adoptive parents of the procedures for obtaining
a revised birth certificate for their child through the United
States department of state.
(f) (h) On and after the first day of November, one thousand
nine hundred ninety, In addition to the information pleaded or
furnished in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b) of
this section, each person whose name is to appear on the
certificate of adoption as a parent, whether as an adoptive parent
or as a natural parent who joins in the adoption without
relinquishing parental rights, shall furnish to the clerk of the
circuit court the social security account number (or numbers, if
the parent has more than one such number) issued to the parent. A
record of the social security number or numbers shall be forwarded
to the state registrar of vital statistics along with the
certificate of adoption, as provided for in subsection (d) of this
section.
§16-5-17. Certificates of birth following adoption, legitimation,
paternity acknowledgment and court determination of
paternity.
(a) Whenever a judgment has been entered determining the
paternity of a child, the clerk of the court shall prepare a
certificate on a form prescribed and furnished by the state
registrar of vital statistics. The certificate shall include such
facts as are necessary to locate and identify the certificate of
birth of the person whose paternity is determined; shall provide
information necessary to establish a new certificate of birth of
the person whose paternity is determined; and shall identify the
action and be certified by the clerk of court The state registrar
shall establish a new certificate of birth for a person born in
West Virginia when he or she receives the following:
(1) A certificate of adoption as provided in section sixteen
of this article or a certificate of adoption prepared and filed in
accordance with the laws of another state or foreign country, or a
certified copy of the decree of adoption, together with the
information necessary to identify the original certificate of birth
and to establish a new certificate of birth, except a new
certificate of birth shall not be established if so requested by
the court decreeing the adoption, the adoptive parents, or the
adopted person; or
(2) A request that a new certificate be established as
prescribed by rule and such evidence as required by rule proving
that such person has been legitimated, or that a court of competent
jurisdiction has determined the paternity of such person, or that both parents have acknowledged the paternity of such person and
request that the surname be changed from that shown on the
certificate.
(b) When a new certificate of birth is established, the actual
city, county and date of birth shall be shown. The new certificate
shall be substituted for the original certificate of birth in the
files, and the original certificate of birth and the evidence of
adoption, legitimation, court determination of paternity, or
paternity acknowledgment shall not be subject to inspection except
upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction or as provided by
rule or as otherwise provided by state law.
(c) Upon receipt of a report of an amended decree of
adoption, the certificate of birth shall be amended as provided by
rule.
(d) Upon receipt of a report or decree of annulment of
adoption, the original certificate of birth shall be restored to
its place in the files and the new certificate and evidence shall
not be subject to inspection except upon order of a court of
competent jurisdiction or as provided by rule.
(e) Upon written request of both parents and receipt of a
sworn acknowledgment of paternity signed by both parents of a child
born out of wedlock, the state registrar shall reflect such
paternity on the certificate of birth in the manner prescribed by
rule if paternity is not already shown on the certificate of birth. Said acknowledgment of paternity is the same instrument as
referenced in subsection (j), section twelve of this article.
(f) If no certificate of birth is on file for the person for
whom a new birth certificate is to be established under this
section, and the date and place of birth have not been determined
in the adoption or paternity proceedings, a delayed certificate of
birth shall be filed with the state registrar as provided in
sections fourteen or fifteen of this article before a new
certificate of birth is established. The new birth certificate
shall be prepared on the delayed birth certificate form.
(g) When a new certificate of birth is established by the
state registrar, all copies of the original certificate of birth in
the custody of any other custodian of vital records in this state
shall be sealed from inspection or forwarded to the state
registrar, as he or she shall direct.
(h) The state registrar shall upon request, prepare and
register a certificate in this state for a person born in a foreign
country who is not a citizen of the United States and who was
adopted through a court of competent jurisdiction in this state.
The certificate shall be established upon receipt of a certificate
of adoption from the court decreeing the adoption, proof of the
date and place of the child's birth, and a request from the court,
the adopting parents, or the adopted person is eighteen years of
age or over that such certificate be prepared. Such certificate shall be labeled "Certificate of Foreign Birth" and shall show the
actual country of birth. A statement shall also be included on the
certificate indicating that it is not evidence of United States
citizenship for the child for whom it is issued. After
registration of the birth certificate in the new name of the
adopted person, the state registrar shall seal and file the
certificate of adoption that shall not be subject to inspection
except upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction or as
provided by rule or as otherwise provided by state law.
(b) (i) Whenever a judgment has been entered determining the
paternity of a child, a certificate on a form prescribed and
furnished by the state registrar shall be prepared and submitted to
the clerk of the court by counsel to the petitioner
. The
certificate shall include such facts as are necessary to locate and
identify the certificate of birth of the person whose paternity is
determined; shall provide information necessary to establish a new
certificate of birth of the person whose paternity is determined;
and shall identify the action and be certified by the clerk of
court.
Not later than the tenth day of each calendar month, the
clerk of the court shall forward to the state registrar of vital
statistics certificates of paternity entered in the preceding
month, together with such related reports as the state registrar of
vital statistics shall require.
(c) (j) On and after the first day of November, one thousand nine hundred ninety, In addition to providing the information
necessary to establish a new certificate of birth of the person
whose paternity has been determined, in accordance with the
provisions of subsection (a) of this section, a person whose name
is to appear on the certificate of paternity as a parent shall
furnish to the clerk of the circuit court the social security
account number (or numbers, if the parent has more than one such
number) issued to the parent. A record of the social security
number or numbers shall be forwarded to the state registrar of
vital statistics along with the certificate of paternity, as
provided for in subsection (b) (i) of this section.
§16-5-18b. Limitation on use of social security numbers.
A social security account number obtained in accordance with
the provisions of this article with respect to the filing of (1) a
certificate of live birth, (2) an application for a delayed
registration of birth, (3) a judicial order establishing a record
of birth, (4) an adoption order or decree, or (5) a certificate of
paternity shall not be transmitted to the clerk of the county
commission. The social security account number shall not appear
upon the public record of the register index of births or upon any
certificate of birth registration issued by the state registrar,
local registrar, county clerk or other issuing authority, if any.
The social security account numbers shall be made available by the
state registrar to the bureau for child support enforcement upon the request of the bureau, to be used solely in connection with the
enforcement of child support orders. Furthermore, such social
security account numbers may be utilized by the section of vital
statistics in accordance with rules promulgated by the department
of health and human resources which are to be in compliance with
regulations prescribed by the secretary of health and human
services of the United States.
§16-5-19. Death registration.
(a) A death certificate of death for each death which occurs
in this state shall be filed with the local registrar of the
registration district in which the death occurs section of vital
statistics, or as otherwise directed by the state registrar, within
three five days after such death, and prior to removal of the body
from the state final disposition, and shall be registered by such
registrar if it has been completed and filed in accordance with
this section. Provided, That
(1) If the place of death is unknown, a death certificate
shall be filed in the registration district in which a dead body is
found within three days after the finding; but the dead body is
found in this state, the certificate of death shall be completed
and filed in accordance with this section. The place where the
body was found shall be shown as the place of death. If the date
of death is unknown, it shall be determined by approximation. If
the date cannot be determined by approximation, the date found shall be entered and identified as such.
(2) If When death occurs in a moving conveyance in the United
States and the body is first removed from the conveyance in this
state, the death shall be registered in this state and the place
where it is first removed shall be considered the place of death.
When a death occurs on a moving conveyance while in international
waters or air space or in a foreign country or its air space and
the body is first removed from the conveyance in this state, the
death shall be registered in this state but the certificate shall
show the actual place of death insofar as can be determined. a
death certificate shall be filed in the registration district in
which the dead body is first removed from such conveyance; and
(3) If the death occurs in a district other than where the
deceased resided, a death certificate shall be filed in the
registration district in which the death occurred and in the
district in which the deceased resided
(3) In all other cases, the place where death is pronounced
shall be considered the place where death occurred.
(b) The funeral director or person acting for him as such who
first assumes custody of a the dead body shall file the death
certificate of death. He or she shall obtain the necessary
personal data from the next of kin or the best qualified person or
source available and shall obtain the medical certification from
the person responsible therefor. The funeral director or person acting for him as such shall obtain the medical certification of
the cause of death from the person responsible for making such
certification provide the death certificate containing sufficient
information to identify the decedent to the certifier within
forty-eight hours after death. The personal data obtained shall
include the deceased person's social security number or numbers.
The social security account number of an individual who has died
shall be placed in the records relating to the death and shall be
recorded on the death certificate. A record of the social security
number or numbers shall be filed with the local registrar of the
district in which the deceased person resided within seven days
after the death, and the local registrar shall transmit such number
or numbers to the state registrar of vital statistics in the same
manner as other personal data is transmitted to the state
registrar.
(c) The medical certification shall be completed and signed
within twenty-four forty-eight hours after death receipt of the
death certificate by the physician in charge of the patient's care
for the illness or condition which results resulted in death
except when inquiry is required pursuant to chapter sixty-one,
article twelve or other applicable provisions of this code. In the
absence of the physician or with his or her approval, the
certificate may be completed by his or her associate physician, any
physician who had been placed in a position of responsibility for any medical coverage of the decedent, the chief medical officer of
the institution in which death occurred, or the physician who
performed an autopsy upon the decedent, provided death is due to
natural causes. The person completing the cause of death shall
attest to its accuracy either by signature or by an approved
electronic process.
(d) When death occurs without medical attendance and inquiry
investigation is not required pursuant to chapter sixty-one,
article twelve or other applicable provisions of this code. If the
state medical examiner or designee or county medical examiner or
county coroner upon report of such a death after investigation of
circumstances, declines jurisdiction the state medical examiner or
designee or county medical examiner or county coroner
may direct
the decedent's family physician, or the physician who pronounces
death, to complete the certification of death. This fact shall be
so noted on the death certificate as provided by rule. Provided,
That the physician in this circumstance shall not be liable for
inaccuracy or other incorrect statement of death when completing
the certificate of death, except when performed knowingly and
wilfully.
(e) When death occurs in a manner subject to investigation,
the coroner or other officer or official charged with the legal
duty of making such investigation shall investigate the cause of
death and shall complete and sign the medical certification within twenty-four hours after making determination of the cause of death
When inquiry is required pursuant to article twelve, chapter
sixty-one, or other applicable provisions of this code, the state
medical examiner or county examiner in the jurisdiction where death
occurred or the body was found shall determine the cause of death
and shall complete the medical certification within forty-eight
hours after taking charge of the case. If cause of death cannot be
determined within forty-eight hours after taking charge of the
case, the medical examiner shall complete the medical certification
with a "pending" cause and/or manner of death to be amended upon
completion of medical investigation.
(f) When death occurs in an institution and the person
responsible for the completion of the medical certification is not
available to pronounce death, another physician or other designated
medical personnel at the institution who views the body may
pronounce death, attest to the pronouncement by signature or an
approved electronic process, and, with the permission of the person
responsible for the medical certification, release the body to the
funeral director or person acting as such: Provided, that if the
death occurs in jail, prison, during court-mandated hospitalization
or under custody of law enforcement authorities, the death should
be reported directly to a medical examiner or coroner for
investigation, pronouncement and certification. The funeral
director or person acting as such must in all cases obtain the medical certification from the person responsible for its
completion or obtain assurance that the medical certification has
been provided to the state registrar by an approved electronic
process.
(g) If the cause of death cannot be determined within the time
prescribed, the medical certification shall be completed as
provided by rule. The attending physician or medical examiner,
upon request, shall give the funeral director or person acting as
such notice of the reason for the delay, and final disposition of
the body shall not be made until authorized by the attending
physician or medical examiner.
(h) Upon receipt of autopsy results, additional scientific
study, or where further inquiry or investigation provides
additional information that would change the information on the
death certificate from that originally reported, the certifier, or
any state medical examiner who provides such inquiry under
authority of article twelve, chapter sixty-one of this code shall
immediately file a supplemental report of cause of death or other
information with the section of vital statistics to amend the
record, but only for purposes of accuracy.
(i) When death is presumed to have occurred within this state
but the body cannot be located, a death certificate may be prepared
by the state registrar only upon receipt of an order of a court of
competent jurisdiction which shall include the finding of facts required to complete the death certificate. Such a death
certificate shall be marked "Presumptive" and shall show on its
face the date of death as determined by the court and the date of
registration, and shall identify the court and the date of the
decree.
(f) (j) In order that each county may have a complete record
of the deaths occurring in said county, the local registrar shall
transmit each month to the county clerk of his county a copy of the
certificates of all deaths occurring in said county, and if any
person shall die in a county other than that county within the
state in which such person last resided prior to death, then the
state registrar shall, if possible, also furnish a copy of such
death certificate listing of said deaths to the clerk of the county
commission of the county wherein such person persons last resided,
from which copies listing the clerk shall compile a record of such
deaths and shall enter the same in a systematic and orderly way in
a well-bound register of deaths for that county, which such
register shall be a public record. The form of said death register
shall be prescribed by the state registrar. of vital statistics
§16-5-19a. Delayed registration of death.
(a) When the death occurring in this state has not been
registered within the time period described by section nineteen of
this article, a certificate of death may be filed in accordance
with rules of the department of health and human resources. Such certificate shall be registered subject to such evidentiary
requirements as the department of health and human resources shall
by rule prescribe to substantiate the alleged facts of death.
(b) When an applicant does not submit the minimum
documentation required in the rule for delayed registration or when
the state registrar has cause to question the validity or adequacy
of the applicant's sworn statement or the documentary evidence and
if the deficiencies are not corrected, the state registrar shall
not register the delayed certificate of death but shall advise the
applicant of the reasons for this action and further advise the
applicant of his or her right to seek an order from a court of
competent jurisdiction.
(c) Certificates of death registered one year or more after
the date of death shall be marked "Delayed" and shall show on their
face the date of the delayed registration.
§16-5-20. Reports of fetal death.
a. A fetal death certificate for each fetal death which occurs
in this state after a gestation period of twenty completed weeks
shall be filed with the local registrar of the registration
district in which the delivery occurs within three days after such
delivery and prior to removal of the fetus from the state, and
shall be registered with such registrar if it has been completed
and filed in accordance with this section: Provided, That
(1) If the place of fetal death is unknown, a fetal death certificate shall be filed in the registration district in which a
dead fetus is found within three days after the finding; and
(2) If a fetal death occurs in a moving conveyance, a fetal
death certificate shall be filed in the registration district in
which the fetus is first removed from such conveyance
b. The funeral director or person acting for him who first
assumes custody of a fetus shall file the fetal death certificate.
In the absence of such a person, the physician or other person in
attendance at or after the delivery shall file the certificate of
fetal death. The person filing such certificate shall obtain the
personal data from the next of kin or the best qualified person or
source available and shall obtain the medical certification of the
cause of death from the person responsible for making such
certification.
c. The medical certification shall be completed and signed
within twenty-four hours after delivery by the physician in
attendance at or after delivery except when inquiry is required by
chapter sixty-one, article twelve or other applicable provision of
this code.
d. When a fetal death occurs without medical attendance for
the mother at or after delivery and an inquiry is not required by
chapter sixty-one, article twelve or other applicable provision of
this code, the local health officer shall investigate the cause of
fetal death and shall complete and sign the medical certification within twenty-four hours after receiving notice of the delivery.
e. When the coroner or other officer or official charged with
the legal duty of making such investigation shall investigate a
fetal death as required by chapter sixty-one, article twelve or
other applicable provision of this code, he shall complete and sign
the medical certification within twenty- four hours after making
determination of the cause of such fetal death.
(a) Each fetal death of three hundred fifty grams or more, and
if weight is unknown, of twenty completed weeks of gestation or
more, calculated from the date the last normal menstrual period
began to the date of delivery, which occurs in this state shall be
reported within five days after delivery to the section of vital
statistics or as otherwise directed by the state registrar:
Provided, That:
(1) When a fetus is delivered in an institution, the person in
charge of the institution or his or her designated representative
shall prepare and file the report. In obtaining the information
required by the birth certificate, all institutions shall use
information gathering procedures (including worksheets) provided or
approved by the state registrar. Institutions may establish
procedures to transfer, electronically or otherwise, information
required by the birth certificate from other systems. However,
such procedures shall be reviewed and approved by the state
registrar to ensure that the information being transferred is the same as that being requested on the birth certificate
; and
(2) When a fetus is delivered outside an institution, the
physician in attendance at or immediately after delivery shall
prepare and file the report; and
(3) When a fetal death required to be reported by this section
occurs without medical attendance at or immediately after the
delivery, investigation is required pursuant to article twelve,
chapter sixty-one of this code. The state medical examiner or
county medical examiner or designee shall investigate the cause of
fetal death and shall prepare and file the report of fetal death
within five days. If the state medical examiner or county medical
examiner or designee do not assume jurisdiction, the local health
officer shall investigate the cause of death and complete and sign
the medical certification within five days after receiving notice
of the death.
(c) When a fetal death occurs in a moving conveyance and the
fetus is first removed from the conveyance in this state or when a
fetus is found in this state and the place of death is unknown, the
fetal death shall be reported in this state. The place where the
fetus was first removed from the conveyance or the fetus was found
shall be considered the place of fetal death.
§16-5-21. Authorization for disposition and disinterment and
reinterment permits.
a. (a) The funeral director or person acting for him as such who first assumes custody of a dead body or of a fetus which has
died after a gestation period of twenty completed weeks shall,
obtain a burial or transit permit prior to final disposition or
removal from the state of the body or fetus and within seventy-two
hours after death shall, prior to final disposition of the body,
obtain authorization for final disposition of the body. The
physician or state medical examiner, county medical examiner or
designee, when certifying the cause of death also shall authorize
final disposition of the body on a form or in a format prescribed
by the state registrar. If the body is to be cremated, additional
authorization for cremation must be obtained from the state medical
examiner, county medical examiner or county coroner on a form or in
a format prescribed by the state medical examiner's office.
b. Such burial or transit permit shall be issued by the local
registrar of the district where the certificate of death or fetal
death is filed in accordance with the requirements of section
nineteen or section twenty of this article.
(b) Prior to final disposition of a fetus, irrespective of the
duration of pregnancy, the funeral director, the person in charge
of the institution, or other person assuming responsibility for
final disposition of the fetus shall obtain from a parent
authorization for final disposition. Such authorization shall be
on a form or in a format prescribed by the state registrar.
(c) With the consent of the physician or state medical examiner or county medical examiner or designee who is to certify
to the cause of death, a dead body may be moved from the place of
death for the final purpose of being prepared for disposition.
c. (d) A burial or transit permit An authorization for
disposition issued under the law of another state which accompanies
a dead body or fetus brought into this state shall be authority for
final disposition of the body or fetus in this state.
(e) No sexton or other person in charge of any place in which
interment or other disposition of dead bodies is made shall inter
or allow interment or other disposition of a dead body or fetus
unless it is accompanied by authorization for final disposition.
(f) Each person in charge of any place for final disposition
shall include in the authorization the date of disposition and
shall return all authorizations to the funeral director or person
acting as such within ten days after the date of disposition. Each
person in charge of any place for final disposition shall keep a
record of all bodies interred or otherwise disposed of on the
premises under his charge, which record shall contain the name of
the deceased person, place of death, date of burial or disposal,
name and address of the funeral director or person acting for him
or her, and such other information as may be required by rule duly
adopted pursuant to this article. Such record shall at all times
be open to official inspection. When there is no person in charge
of the place for final disposition, the funeral director or person acting as such shall complete the authorization and write across
the face of the authorization "No person in charge". At the close
of each month the funeral director or person acting as such shall
transmit to the state registrar, in the state where the death
occurred, all authorizations received during the month.
d. (g) A permit Authorization for disinterment and reinterment
shall be required prior to disinterment of a dead body or fetus
except as authorized by rule and regulation or otherwise provided
by law or by order of a court having jurisdiction with respect
thereto. Such permit authorization shall be issued by the local
registrar to a licensed funeral director, embalmer, or other
persons acting on their behalf, upon proper application.
e. The form and contents of burial, transit and disinterment
and reinterment permits shall be prescribed by the state registrar
of vital statistics in conformance with the provisions of
subdivision (4), subsection a, section five of this article.
a. (a) The state board department of health and human
resources shall, by rule and regulation and upon such conditions as
it may prescribe to assure compliance with the purposes of this
article, provide for the extension of the periods prescribed in
sections nineteen, twenty and twenty-one of this article for the
filing of death certificates of death, reports of fetal death,
certificates medical certifications of the cause of death, and for the obtaining of burial or transit permits authorization for
disposition, in cases in which compliance with the applicable
prescribed period would result in undue hardship.
b. (b) Rules and regulations of the state board department of
health and human resources shall provide for the issuance of a
burial or transit permit authorization for disposition under
section twenty-one of this article prior to the filing of a
certificate of death or fetal death upon conditions designed to
assure compliance with the purposes of this article in cases in
which compliance with the requirement that the certificate be filed
prior to the issuance of the permit would result in undue hardship.
§16-5-24. Correction and amendment of vital records.
(a) A certificate or record report registered pursuant to
under this article may be amended only in accordance with the
provisions of this article and rules and regulations duly adopted
thereunder by the department of health and human resources to
protect the integrity and accuracy of vital records.
(b) A certificate or report that is amended under this section
shall be marked "amended," indicate that it has been amended,
except as hereinafter otherwise provided in this subsection and in
subsection (d) of this section or by rule. The date of amendment
and a summary description of the evidence submitted in support of
the amendment shall be endorsed on or made a part of the record.
A record shall be maintained which identifies the evidence upon which the amendment was based, the date of the amendment, and the
identity of the person making the amendment. The state board
department of health and human resources shall prescribe by rule
and regulation the conditions under which additions or minor
corrections shall may be made to birth certificates or records
within one year after the date of birth of the event without the
certificate or record being considered or marked as amended
indicating that it has been marked amended. The state board
department of health and human resources shall also prescribe by
legislative rule promulgated in accordance with the provisions of
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code a simplified procedure for the
correction of any certificate or record registered pursuant to this
article which is deficient in any particular, including, but not
limited to, the omission or misspelling of a first name, and such
rule and regulation shall specify when and under what circumstances
a certificate or record so corrected shall be considered or marked
as amended.
(c) Upon receipt of a certified copy of a court order of a
court of competent jurisdiction changing the name of a person born
in this state, which order was made and entered in a proceeding
brought for that purpose, and upon request of such person or his or
her parent parents, guardian, or legal representative, the state
registrar of vital statistics shall amend the certificate of birth
to reflect the new name.
(d) Upon receipt of a certified copy of an order of a court of
competent jurisdiction indicating the sex of an individual born in
this state has been changed by surgical procedure and whether such
individual's name has been changed, the certificate of birth of
such individual shall be amended as prescribed by rule.
(d) (e) Upon request, and upon receipt of a an acceptable
sworn acknowledgment of paternity of a child born out of wedlock
signed by both parents, the state registrar of vital statistics
shall amend the certificate of birth to show such paternity if
paternity is not shown on the birth certificate. If the child is
under eighteen years of age at the time of acknowledgment and upon
request of both of the parents, the surname of the child shall be
changed on the certificate to that of the father. Such certificate
shall not be marked "amended."
(f) When an applicant does not submit the minimum
documentation required in the rules for amending a vital record or
when the state registrar has cause to question the validity or
adequacy of the applicant's sworn statements or the documentary
evidence, and if the deficiencies are not corrected, the state
registrar shall not amend the vital record but shall advise the
applicant of the reasons for this action and further advise the
applicant of the right to seek an order from a court of competent
jurisdiction.
(e) (g) When a certificate or report is amended under this section by the state registrar, the state registrar of vital
statistics shall report the amendment to any other the custodian of
any permanent local records the vital record and such their record
shall be amended accordingly.
(h) When an amendment is made to a certificate of marriage or
record of divorce or annulment by the local official issuing the
marriage license or the court which ordered the decree of divorce
or annulment, copies of such amendment shall be forwarded to the
state registrar.
(f) (i) On and after the first day of November, one thousand
nine hundred ninety, In addition to providing the information
necessary to amend a certificate or record in accordance with the
provisions of this section, a person whose name is to appear on the
amended certificate as a parent shall furnish to the person
receiving the information the social security account number (or
numbers, if the parent has more than one such number) issued to the
parent. A record of the social security number or numbers shall be
forwarded to the state registrar of vital statistics along with the
information required for the amended certificate.
§16-5-25. Reproduction and preservation of records.
To preserve vital records and other original documents, the
state registrar of vital statistics is hereby authorized to prepare
typewritten, photographic, electronic, or other reproductions of
certificates or reports original records and files in his office the section of vital statistics. Such reproductions when verified
and approved certified by him the state registrar shall be accepted
as the original record records, and the documents from which
permanent reproductions have been made may be disposed of as
provided by rule.
§16-5-26. Disclosure of information from vital records or vital
reports.
In accordance with section twenty-seven of this article and
the rules adopted pursuant thereto:
a. (a) To protect the integrity of vital statistics records or
vital reports, to insure ensure their proper use, and to insure
ensure the efficient and proper operation of the vital statistics
system, it shall be unlawful for any person to permit inspection
of, confidential information or to disclose, confidential
information contained in vital statistics records or in vital
reports, or to copy or issue a copy of all or part of any such
confidential information record or report, except as unless
authorized by law this article, by rule or by order of a court
having jurisdiction with respect thereto or by rule and regulation
duly adopted under the provisions of this article of competent
jurisdiction. Rules adopted under this section shall provide for
adequate standards of security and confidentiality of vital
records.
b. The state board of health may by rule and regulation authorize the disclosure of confidential data contained in vital
statistics records for statistical research purposes.
(b) Disclosure to researchers of information that may identify
any person named in any vital record or report may be made only
pursuant to rules that require submission of written requests for
information and execution of research agreements that protect the
confidentiality of the information provided. Such agreements shall
prohibit the release by the researcher of any information that
might identify any person other than releases that may be provided
for in the agreement. For purposes of this article, research means
a systematic investigation designed primarily to develop or
contribute to generalizable knowledge. Nothing in this article
prohibits the release of information or data that would not
identify any person named in a vital record or report.
c. Information in vital statistics records indicating that a
birth occurred out of wedlock shall not be disclosed except as
provided by rule and regulation duly adopted or upon order of a
court having jurisdiction with respect thereto.
d. (c) Appeals from decisions of the custodians of permanent
local records refusing to disclose confidential information, or to
permit inspection of or copying of confidential information under
the authority of this section and rules and regulations issued
hereunder shall be made to the state registrar, of vital statistics
whose decisions shall be binding upon the local custodians of permanent local records.
(d) When one hundred years have elapsed after the date of
birth, or fifty years have elapsed after the date of death, fetal
death, marriage, or divorce or annulment, the records of these
events in the custody of the state registrar and local custodians
shall become available to the public without restriction, except
for the release of social security numbers, in accordance with
rules that shall provide for the continued safekeeping of the
records.
(e) The federal agency responsible for national vital
statistics may be furnished such copies of records, reports, or
data from the system of vital statistics as it may require for
national statistics. To furnish such records, reports, or data the
department of health and human resources shall enter into an
agreement with the federal agency indicating the statistical or
research purposes for which records, reports, or data may be used.
Such agreement will also set forth the support to be provided by
the federal agency for the collection, processing, and transmission
of such records, reports, or data. Upon written request, the state
registrar may approve, in writing, additional statistical or
research uses of the records, reports, or data supplied under the
agreement.
(f) Federal, state, and local governmental agencies may, upon
request, be furnished copies of records or data from the system of vital statistics, provided that such copies or data shall be used
solely in the conduct of their official duties.
(g) The state registrar may, by agreement, transmit copies of
records and other reports required by this article to offices of
vital statistics outside this state when such records or other
reports relate to residents of those jurisdictions or persons born
in those jurisdictions. The agreement shall specify the
statistical and administrative purposes for which the records may
be used and the agreement shall further provide instructions for
the proper retention and disposition of such copies. Copies
received by the section of vital statistics from offices of vital
statistics in other states shall be handled in the same manner as
prescribed in this section.
§16-5-27. Copies from the system of vital statistics.
In accordance with section twenty-five twenty-six of this
article and the rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto:
a. The state registrar of vital statistics shall upon request
issue a certified copy of all or any part of any certificate or
record in his custody. Each copy issued shall show the date of
registration, and copies issued from records marked
"delayed,""amended," or "court order" shall be similarly marked and
shall show the effective date of the delayed registration,
amendment or court order.
(a) The state registrar and other custodians of vital records authorized by the state registrar to issue certified copies shall,
upon receipt of an application, issue a certified copy of a vital
record in his or her custody or a part thereof to the registrant,
his or her spouse, his or her adult children, grand-children or
great-grand children or their respective authorized representative.
Others may be authorized to obtain certified copies when they
demonstrate that the record is needed for the determination or
protection of his or her personal or property right. The
department of health and human resources may promulgate rules to
further define others who may obtain copies of vital records filed
under this article.
(b) All forms and procedures used in the issuance of certified
copies of vital records in the state shall be approved by the state
registrar. All certified copies of certificates of birth issued
shall have security features that deter the document from being
altered, counterfeited, duplicated, or simulated without ready
detection.
(c) Each copy or abstract issued shall show the date of
registration, and copies or abstracts issued from records marked
"Amended" shall be similarly marked and, when possible, show the
effective date. Copies issued from records marked "Delayed" shall
be similarly marked and shall include the date of registration and
a description of the evidence used to establish the delayed
certificate. Any copy issued of a "Certificate of Foreign Birth"shall indicate the foreign birth and show the actual place of
birth and the statement that the certificate is not proof of United
States citizenship for the adoptive child.
b. (d) A certified copy of a certificate vital record or any
part thereof, issued in accordance with subdivision subdivisions a,
b, and c (a), (b) and (c) of this section, shall be considered for
all purposes the same as the original, and shall be prima facie
evidence of the facts stated therein: stated Provided, That the
evidentiary value of a certificate or record filed more than one
year after the event, or a record which has been amended, or a
certificate of foreign birth, shall be determined by the judicial
body or administrative body or official before whom the certificate
is offered as evidence.
(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit
disclosure of information contained in the "Information for Medical
and Health Use Only" section of the birth certificate or the
"Information for Statistical Purposes Only" section of the
certificate of marriage or certificate of divorce or annulment
unless specifically authorized by the state registrar for
statistical or research purposes. Such data shall not be subject
to subpoena or court order and shall not be admissible before any
court, tribunal, or judicial body. Information on the birth
certificate collected for administrative use may only be disclosed
for administrative, statistical, or research purposes authorized by state or federal law and approved under rules and regulations
promulgated by the department of health and human resources.
Administrative information shall not be included on any certified
copies issued of the record.
(f) When the state registrar receives information that a
certificate may have been registered through fraud or
misrepresentation, he or she shall withhold issuance of any copy of
that certificate. The state registrar shall inform the registrant
or the registrant's authorized representative of the right to
request a hearing by the commissioner of the bureau for public
health in accordance with the bureau for public health's rules of
procedure for contested case hearings and declaratory rulings and
article five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code. The secretary of
the department of health and human resources may on his or her
initiative authorize the state registrar or another person to hold
an investigation or hearing with the authority of and in accordance
with section sixteen, article one of this chapter to determine if
fraud or misrepresentation has occurred. If upon conclusion of a
hearing or investigation no fraud or misrepresentation is found,
copies may be issued. If fraud or misrepresentation is found by a
preponderance of the evidence, the state registrar shall remove the
certificate from the file. The certificate and evidence shall be
retained but shall not be subject to inspection or copying except
upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction or by the state registrar for purposes of prosecution or administration of the
vital statistics program.
c. The national office of vital statistics may be furnished
such copies of or data from state vital statistics records as it
may require for national statistics: Provided, That the state
shall be reimbursed for the cost of furnishing such data:
Provided, however, That such data shall not be used for other than
statistical purposes by the national office of vital statistics
unless so authorized by the state board of health.
d. Federal, state, local and other public or private agencies
may, upon request, be furnished copies of or data from state vital
statistics for statistical purposes upon such terms or conditions
as may be prescribed by the state board of health.
e. (g) No person shall prepare or issue any certificate which
purports to be an original, certified copy, or copy of a
certificate of birth, death, or fetal death vital record, except as
authorized by this article, or by rules and regulations duly
adopted thereunder. Provided, That the foregoing provisions of
this subdivision shall not be construed as in any way prohibiting
or infringing upon the right and duty of a county clerk to furnish
a certified copy of any records in his lawful custody
§16-5-28. Fees for copies and searches.
(a) The state director commissioner of the department bureau for public health shall prescribe the fees, if any, to be charged
and collected by the state registrar, of vital statistics for
certified copies of certificates or records, not to exceed five ten
dollars per copy, or for a search of the files or records when no
copy is made: Provided, That the state registrar shall, upon
request of any parent or guardian, supply without fee a certificate
limited to a statement as to the date of birth of any child when
the same shall be necessary for admission/ to school, or for the
purpose of securing employment: Provided, however, That the fee
shall not exceed eight dollars until the first day of July, two
thousand and five and that the state registrar may furnish
certified copies of birth and death records to the state welfare
department agencies, and to organized charities, free of charge,
when such certificates are needed in presenting claims to the
federal government, or to the state department of welfare for
public assistance, and an accurate record shall be made of all such
certificates so furnished. Furthermore, the commissioner of the
bureau for public health may prescribe additional fees for the
priority production and/or express delivery of certified copies to
those who request said services over and above the charge for a
certified copy.
(b) After the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
eighty-two, and subject to the provisions set forth in section two,
article two, chapter twelve of this code, there is established in the state treasury a separate account which shall be designated
"the vital statistics account."
After the first day of July, two thousand and three, and
subject to the provisions set forth in section two, article two,
chapter twelve of this code, there is established in the state
treasury a separate account which shall be designated "the vital
statistics improvement fund." Funds collected pursuant to this
section shall be used to modernize and automate the system of vital
statistics in this State. Such funds shall not be used to supplant
existing funding which is necessary for the daily operation of the
system of vital statistics. Said funds shall be retained in a
nonlapsing fund for the improvement of the system of vital
statistics.
The director of health shall promptly deposit two fifths of
all fees received under the provisions of this section to the vital
statistics account. The commissioner of the bureau for public
health shall promptly deposit one dollar received under the
provisions of this section for each certified copy to the "vital
statistics improvement fund." The director commissioner of the
bureau for public health shall promptly deposit three fifths
dollars received under the provisions of this section for each
certified copy to the general revenue fund account. The
commissioner of the bureau for public health shall promptly deposit
the remainder of all fees received under the provisions of this section for each certified copy and fees collected for priority
production of certified copies to the vital statistics account.
The director commissioner of the bureau for public health is
authorized to expend the moneys deposited in the vital statistics
account in accordance with the laws of this state as is necessary
to implement this article. The Legislature shall appropriate all
moneys in the vital statistics account as part of the annual state
budget beginning with the fiscal year one thousand nine hundred
eighty-three -- eighty-four.
The director commissioner shall make an annual report to the
Legislature on the vital statistics account, including the previous
fiscal year's expenditures and projected expenditures for the next
fiscal year.
§16-5-29. Persons required to keep records.
a. (a) Every person in charge of an institution as defined in
this article shall keep a record of personal data concerning each
person admitted to or confined in to such institution. containing
such information as is required by the standard certificate of
birth, death, and fetal death forms issued under the provisions of
this article The record shall include such information as required
for the certificates of birth and death and the reports of fetal
death required by this article. The record shall be made at the
time of admission from information provided by such the person
being admitted or confined, but when it cannot be so obtained, the same information shall be obtained from relatives or other persons
acquainted with the facts. The name and address of the person
providing the information shall be a part of the record.
b. (b) When a dead human body or fetus is released or disposed
of by an institution, the person in charge of the institution shall
keep a record showing the name of the deceased decedent, date of
death, name and address of the person to whom the body or fetus is
released, and date of removal from the institution. or if finally
disposed of If final disposition is made by the institution, the
date, place, and manner of disposition shall also be recorded.
c. (c) A funeral director, embalmer, sexton or other person
who removes from the place of death or transports or finally
disposes makes final disposition of a dead body or fetus, in
addition to filing any certificate or other form report required by
this article or rules promulgated hereunder, shall keep a record
which shall identify the body, and such information pertaining to
his or her receipt, removal, and delivery, burial or cremation of
such body as may be prescribed by rules and regulations duly
adopted by the state board department of health and human
resources.
d. (d) Records maintained under this section shall be retained
for a period of not less than three years and shall be made
available for inspection by the state registrar of vital statistics
or his or her representative upon request.
§16-5-30. Duty to furnish information relative to vital events.
a. (a) Any person having knowledge of any fact, required to be
recorded under the provisions of this article or any rules and
regulations duly adopted thereunder, or knowledge of which by the
state registrar of vital statistics is necessary to effectuate the
purposes of this article regarding any birth, death, fetal death,
marriage, or divorce or annulment, upon demand of the state
registrar shall furnish information of such fact to the state
registrar of vital statistics upon request.
(b) Any person or institution that in good faith provides
information required by this article or rules shall not be subject
to any action for damages.
(c) Not later than the tenth day of the month following the
month of occurrence, the administrator of each institution shall
send to the section of vital statistics a list showing all births,
deaths, and fetal deaths occurring in that institution during the
preceding month. Such lists shall be on forms provided or approved
by the state registrar.
(d) Not later than the tenth day of the month following the
month of occurrence, each funeral director shall send to the
section of vital statistics a list showing all dead bodies embalmed
or otherwise prepared for final disposition, or dead bodies finally
disposed of, by the funeral director during the preceding month.
Such list shall be made on forms provided or approved by the state registrar.
§16-5-30a. Matching of birth and death certificates.
To protect the integrity of vital records and to prevent the
fraudulent use of birth certificates of deceased persons, the state
registrar is hereby authorized to match birth and death
certificates, in accordance with rules that require proof beyond a
reasonable doubt of the fact of death, and to post the facts of
death to the appropriate birth certificate. Copies issued from
birth certificates marked deceased shall be similarly marked.
§16-5-31. Penalties.
a. (a) A person shall be guilty of a felony and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than ten thousand
dollars or imprisoned in a state correctional facility not more
than five years, or both fined and imprisoned, for commission of
any of the following:
(1) Any person who Wilfully and knowingly makes any false
statement in a report, record, or certificate required to be filed
under this article, or in an application for an amendment thereof,
or who wilfully and knowingly supplies false information intending
that such information be used in the preparation of any such
report, record or certificate, or amendment thereof, or in an
application for a certified copy of a vital record; or
(2) Any person who Without lawful authority and with the
intent to deceive, makes, counterfeits, alters, amends or mutilates any record, report, or certificate required to be filed under this
article, or any certified copy of such record, report, or
certificate; or
(3) Any person who Wilfully and knowingly obtains, possesses,
uses, sells, furnishes or attempts to obtain, possess, use, sell or
furnishes furnish or attempts to furnish to another for use, for
any purpose of deception, any certificate, record, or report,
required by this article or certified copy thereof so made,
counterfeited, altered, amended, or mutilated, or that is false in
whole or in part, or that relates to the birth of another person,
whether living or deceased; or
(4) Any person who with the intention to deceive wilfully uses
or attempts to use any certificate of birth or certified copy of a
record of birth knowing that such certificate or certified copy was
issued upon a record which is false in whole or in part or which
related to the birth of another person; or
(4) Wilfully and knowingly as an employee of the section of
vital statistics or any office designated under subsection (b),
section five of this article, furnishes or processes a certificate
of birth, or certified copy of certificate of birth, with the
knowledge or intention that it be used for the purposes of
deception; or
(5) Any person who wilfully and knowingly furnishes a
certificate of birth or certified copy of a record of birth with the intention that it be used by a person other than the person to
whom the record of birth relates, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor,
and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not
more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not more than
one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(5) Without lawful authority possesses any certificate,
record, or report, required by this article or a copy or a
certified copy of such certificate, record, or report knowing it to
have been stolen or otherwise unlawfully obtained.
b. (b) A person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon
conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than one thousand
dollars, or confined in the county or regional jail not more than
one year, or both fined and confined, for commission of any of the
following:
(1) Any person who Wilfully and knowingly transports or
accepts for transportation, interment or other disposition a dead
body without an accompanying permit as provided in this article; or
(2) Any person who Wilfully and knowingly refuses to provide
information required by this article or rules adopted hereunder; or
(3) Any person who Wilfully and knowingly neglects or violates
any of the provisions of this article or refuses to perform any of
the duties imposed upon him or her. by this article, shall be
guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
punished by a fine of not less than twenty-five dollars nor more than one hundred dollars or by imprisonment for not more than
thirty days, or by both such fine and imprisonment
§16-5-32. Uniform system of registration of marriage, divorce and
annulment of marriage.
To the end that an efficient and uniform system of
registration of marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage shall
be established in this state, the state registrar of vital
statistics shall provide for the registration of each marriage,
divorce and annulment of marriage which shall occur in this state.
In so doing, the state director commissioner of the bureau for
public health subject to rules and regulations promulgated by the
board department of health and human resources shall have the
authority and duty to:
a. (a) Install a statewide system of registering, indexing,
and preserving records of marriage, divorce and annulment of
marriage;
b. (b) Make and amend necessary rules, and regulations, give
instructions, and prescribe and furnish forms, for collecting,
transcribing, compiling and preserving records and statistics of
marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage; and
c. (c) Make and publish a statistical report of marriage,
divorce and annulment of marriage in this state.
§16-5-33. Registration of marriages.
All marriages taking place within the state shall be
registered with the state registrar of vital statistics in the
following manner:
a. (a) On or before the tenth day of each month, the county
clerk of each county shall forward to the state registrar a report
of all marriage records made by him or her during the previous
month, in such form and setting forth such information as may be
prescribed by rule and regulation duly adopted pursuant to this
article; and
b. (b) The state registrar shall preserve and index all
records thus received and shall upon request issue a certified copy
of the same, which shall be prima facie evidence in all courts in
the state of the facts stated therein.
§16-5-34. Registration of divorces and annulments of marriages.
a. The clerk of every court of record having jurisdiction of
actions for divorce or annulment of marriage shall monthly make and
deliver to the state registrar of vital statistics a report on a
form prescribed by the state registrar of vital statistics, listing
all of the divorces or annulments of marriages granted by such
court during the preceding calendar month, showing insofar as such
information appears in the complaint or final order or decree:
(1) The names and ages of the parties to the action;
(2) The date and place of the marriage thereby terminated;
(3) The names of said parties' children under the age of eighteen years; and
(4) The date of the final order or decree:
Provided, That in counties where the court is not in continuous
session these reports shall be forwarded within ten days following
the close of the term of the court.
(a)
On and after the first day of July, 2003, a record of each
divorce or annulment decreed or ordered by any court of competent
jurisdiction in this State shall be filed by the clerk of that
court with the section of vital statistics and shall be registered
if it has been completed and filed in accordance with this section.
The record shall be prepared by the petitioner or his or her legal
representative in the form prescribed or furnished by the state
registrar and shall be presented to the clerk of the court with the
petition. In all cases the completed record shall be prerequisite
to the entry of the decree or order.
b. The state registrar shall search his or her files of
reports of divorce and annulment of marriage upon receipt of
written request and a fee of one dollar. If the record is found,
he or she shall verify the facts of the divorce or annulment of
marriage in writing to the applicant and shall notify the applicant
of the place where the original record is found.
(b)
The clerk of the court shall complete and forward to the
section of vital statistics on or before the tenth day of each
calendar month the records of each divorce or annulment order or decree entered during the preceding calendar month.
c. (c) Failure of the clerk of the court to comply with the
provisions of subsection a hereof (a) of this section shall in no
way affect the validity of any final judgment, order or decree of
divorce or annulment of marriage.
(d) The state registrar shall preserve and index all records
thus received and shall upon request issue a certified copy of the
same, which shall be prima facie evidence in all courts in the
state of the facts stated therein.
§16-5-34a. Applicability to previously received certificates and
reports.
The provisions of this article also apply to all certificates
of birth, death, marriage, and divorce or annulment and reports of
fetal death previously received by the section of vital statistics
and in the custody of the state registrar or any other custodian of
vital records.
§16-5-35. Severability.
If any provision of this article or the application thereof to
any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall
not affect other provisions or applications of the article which
can be given effect without the invalid provision or application,
and to this end the provisions of this article are declared to be
severable.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide a more effective
and efficient operation of the state's vital statistics system and
to make the system more consistent with national model legislation.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
§§16-5-19a, 30a and 34a are new; therefore, underscoring and
strike-throughs have been omitted.