Prohibits charging a fee to obtain a certified copy or certified transcript of birth when the department of corrections and community supervision or a local correctional facility requests such for an individual under community supervision in connection with his or her ongoing supervision in the community.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A8386
SPONSOR: Weprin TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the public health law, in relation to
prohibiting charging a fee to obtain a certified copy or certified tran-
script of birth when the department of corrections and community super-
vision or a local correctional facility requests such for an individual
under community supervision
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends subdivision 4 of section 4174 of the public health law.
Section 2 amends section 4179 of the public health law.
Section 3 sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Individuals often need state-issued identification to access social
services, secure housing, and apply for employment, which are all key
factors that contribute to the individual successfully reintegrating
into the community after serving an incarceratory sentence. Many people
returning from incarceration, however, do not have state-issued iden-
tification, and obtaining such identification frequently requires
providing a copy of a birth certificate, access to which can be costly.
In 2010, legislation was enacted to provide birth certificates from the
state health department and the NYC bureau of vital statistics at no
charge to state and local correctional facilities as well as to NYC DOC
when requested for the purpose of providing such certificate to an
inmate in anticipation of such inmate's release from custody. This bill
modifies existing law to expand those provisions to include requests
made on behalf of individuals under community supervision, to promote
successful reentry of those individuals.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
Minimal to state and local governments.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8386
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
June 15, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WEPRIN -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to prohibiting charg-
ing a fee to obtain a certified copy or certified transcript of birth
when the department of corrections and community supervision or a
local correctional facility requests such for an individual under
community supervision
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 4 of section 4174 of the public health law, as
2 amended by chapter 323 of the laws of 2016, is amended to read as
3 follows:
4 4. No fee shall be charged for a search, certification, certificate,
5 certified copy or certified transcript of a record to be used for school
6 entrance, employment certificate or for purposes of public relief or
7 when required by the veterans administration to be used in determining
8 the eligibility of any person to participate in the benefits made avail-
9 able by the veterans administration or when required by a board of
10 elections for the purposes of determining voter eligibility or when
11 requested by the department of corrections and community supervision or
12 a local correctional facility as defined in subdivision sixteen of
13 section two of the correction law for the purpose of providing a certi-
14 fied copy or certified transcript of birth to an inmate in anticipation
15 of such inmate's release from custody or to an individual under communi-
16 ty supervision in connection with his or her ongoing supervision in the
17 community or to obtain a death certificate to be used for administrative
18 purposes for an inmate who has died under custody or when requested by
19 the office of children and family services or an authorized agency for
20 the purpose of providing a certified copy or certified transcript of
21 birth to a youth placed in the care and custody or custody and guardian-
22 ship of the local commissioner of social services or the care and custo-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13301-01-9
A. 8386 2
1 dy or custody and guardianship of the office of children and family
2 services in anticipation of such youth's discharge from placement or
3 foster care.
4 § 2. Section 4179 of the public health law, as amended by chapter 323
5 of the laws of 2016, is amended to read as follows:
6 § 4179. Vital records; fees; city of New York. Notwithstanding the
7 provisions of paragraph one of subdivision a of section 207.13 of the
8 health code of the city of New York, the department of health shall
9 charge, and the applicant shall pay, for a search of two consecutive
10 calendar years under one name and the issuance of a certificate of
11 birth, death or termination of pregnancy, or a certification of birth or
12 death, or a certification that the record cannot be found, a fee of
13 fifteen dollars for each copy. Provided, however, that no such fee shall
14 be charged when the department of corrections and community supervision
15 or a local correctional facility as defined in subdivision sixteen of
16 section two of the correction law requests a certificate of birth or
17 certification of birth for the purpose of providing such certificate of
18 birth or certification of birth to an inmate in anticipation of such
19 inmate's release from custody or to an individual under community super-
20 vision in connection with his or her ongoing supervision in the communi-
21 ty or to obtain a death certificate to be used for administrative
22 purposes for an inmate who has died under custody or when the office of
23 children and family services or an authorized agency requests a certi-
24 fied copy or certified transcript of birth for a youth placed in the
25 custody of the local commissioner of social services or the custody of
26 the office of children and family services pursuant to article three of
27 the family court act for the purpose of providing such certified copy or
28 certified transcript of birth to such youth in anticipation of discharge
29 from placement.
30 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
