Marriage registration

1. Marriage registration Center for Health Statistics

2. Introductions Jane Rhodes Brandon Tucker Registration Specialist Registration Specialist Joni Sanchez Registration Supervisor

3. Introductions Shannon Wahler-Edwards Anna Wahler Registration Specialist Registration Specialist Carol Herigstad Registration Specialist

4. Introductions Thomas Serra Amendment Supervisor Amendment Lead Asuka Christman

5. Introductions Katitza Holthaus Anneke Jansen Policy Analyst Vital Records Manager

6. Introductions State Registrar Jean Remsbecker

7. Part 1 Current Registration practices

8. Washington State Certificate of Marriage Form prescribed by State Registrar (DOH/CHS 005 – REV 12/2012) Items collected defined in WAC 246 – 491 Three sections of form Formatting of document

9. Auditor Section Required Flexible County of License Date Valid Not Valid after County Auditor’s Signature Date received

10. Demographic Section Required Flexible Legal name before marriage (first and last) – both people Current residence: • Wa Res: County or city and state or Zip • Not Wa res: State or country zip code Date of birth Birth State (or Country if not born in United States) Person A & B Label: Bride, groom, spouse (defaults to spouse) Birth name Male or Female Mother/parent birth name Father/parent birth name Mother/parent birth state (or country) Father/parent Birth state (or country) Social Security Number Information (Person A & B)

11. Officiant Section Required Flexible Date of marriage County of ceremony Date signed Officiant’s address Officiant’s name printed Officiant’s signature Witness signature x2 Person A signature and Date signed Person B signature and Date signed Officiant’s daytime phone

12. Correction Requests prior to Registration Most Common Reasons Returned: • Date received by Auditor (before DOM, missing) • Birth place (Person A or B) • County of ceremony • Date of marriage outside of validity dates Number of returns to counties: • 2018: 191 • 2019: 254 If not returned the certificate does not get registered.

13. Amendment Requests after Registration Need an Affidavit for Correction form available on our website or on the back of the certificate. Most common items amended: • Names – Person A and B • Date of birth – Person A and B • Parent’s Names Who can request amendments: • Parties: Any information related to Person A and B with one proof documentation • Officiant: Date of Marriage, county of ceremony, address, name, day time phone • Auditor: County of license, date valid, not valid after date, date received Auditor’s office is notified of the amendment.

14. How are marriage records accessed? Issued certificates in 2018: 7,950 Sent to the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) for number of occurrences by month on an annual basis. WHALES (Washington Health and Life Event System) module accessed by other state agencies (VRWA): • Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), Division of Child Support (DSHS DCS), Health Care Authority (HCA), and Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) access data to verify benefits eligibility Data files produced by CHS: • Annual Marriage Statistical • Annual Marriage Public Indexes to Archives: • Spouse A and B Name (First, Middle Initial, Legal Last, and Birth Last) • Date of Ceremony • County of Issuing License Code and County of Ceremony Code

15. Timeliness of Submission RCW 26.04.100 “The county auditor shall… and transmit, by the tenth day of each month, all such certificates filed with him or her during the preceding month.”

16. Part 2 Changes in Vital Records Law and Rulemaking

17. Overview of Vital Statistics Department of Health administers Washington’s vital records system Approximately 14 million birth, death, marriage, and divorce records dating back to 1907, with over 200,000 new records added each year Vital records serve as documentary proof of a life event Vital records data is released to government agencies, hospitals, insurance companies, researchers, and individuals for assessment, public health surveillance, and epidemiology

18. Reason for Legislative Proposal Many parts of Chapter 70.58 RCW had not been updated since 1907 Need to increase the security of birth and death certificates to reduce identity theft and prevent fraud Align with model law

19. Changes of ESSB 5332 Limit the release of certified copies or “certificates” of birth and death records to a qualified applicant Creates a short form death certificate Allow the release of non-certified informational copies of birth and death records Permit government agencies and Tribal governments to access confidential birth information for non-research public health work Release death data with a signed data sharing agreement Transfer custody of vital records to State Archives after specified timeframe (e.g., 100 years for births and 25 years for deaths, marriages, and divorces) Gender neutralize the language to reflect social and legal changes, marriage equality, and the 2017 Uniform Parentage Act Provide a nonbinary sex designation optionon vital records Increase the certificate fee to $25 Fix an error in the fee distribution language Provide free birth certificates to homeless individuals living in Washington State Authorize DOH rulemaking to implement the changes in the law and new fees for programmatic services (i.e., amendments and data files) Clearly exempt vital records from the public records act Update the language to reflect current practice and technology Organize the content in a logical way

20. Short Form Death Certificate ESSB 5332 (Chapter 148, Laws of 2019, Section 21) “The state or local registrar may issue a short form certification of death that does not display information relating to cause and manner of death to a qualified applicant.” Qualified applicants are: • The decedent's spouse or domestic partner, child, parent, stepparent, stepchild, sibling, grandparent, great grandparent, grandchild, legal guardian immediately prior to death, legal representative, authorized representative, or next of kin as specified in RCW 11.28.120; • A funeral director or the funeral establishment licensed within twelve months of the date of death; • A government agency or court to conduct of the agency's or court's official duties; • A title insurer or title insurance agent handling a transaction involving real property of the decedent; or • A person that demonstrates that the certified copy is necessary for a determination related to the death or the protection of a personal or property right related to the death.

21. Stakeholders for Short Form Death Certificate Stakeholder workshop on September 24th from 11am-1:30pm

22. Nonbinary Sex Designation Option “X” is offered for birth through amendment process since 2018 Starting January 1, 2021 the Department of Health is required to provide a nonbinary option as an amendment on vital records • Death • Marriage

23. Rulemaking Preproposal Statement of Inquiry (CR 101) was filed on June 26, 2019 WSR# 19-14-039 Department of Health is proposing new rules that may: • Identify the information displayed on birth and death certificates, and informational copies • Establish requirements to obtain certificates and informational copies of birth and death records • Adopt fees for certificates and informational copies More information or to join the Interested Parties list https://www.doh.wa.gov/LicensesPermitsandCertificates/BirthDeathMarriageandDivorce/RuleMaking

24. Future Rulemaking Lots of rulemaking after January 1, 2021 Possible rules topics • Amendments • Birth registration • Delayed birth • Divorce registration • Marriage registration Marriage registration • Adding nonbinary sex designation option at time of registration • Removing Social Security numbers