DESCRIPTION OF REGULATION: R.61-19, Vital Statistics.

Purpose: The Department amends R.61-19, Vital Statistics, to provide general updates to make processes more clear, concise, customer-friendly, and efficient; to remove obsolete sections; to add and update definitions; to address advancements in processes for the creation and amendment of vital records; and to bring the regulation into conformity with changes in South Carolina law.

Legal Authority: 1976 Code Sections 44-63-10, et seq.

Plan for Implementation: The amendments will take legal effect upon General Assembly approval and upon publication in the State Register. Department personnel will then take appropriate steps to inform the regulated community of the amendments. Additionally, a copy of the regulation will be posted on the Department’s website, accessible at www.scdhec.gov/regulations-table. Printed copies may also be requested, for a fee, from the Department’s Freedom of Information Office.

DETERMINATION OF NEED AND REASONABLENESS OF THE REGULATION BASED ON ALL FACTORS HEREIN AND EXPECTED BENEFITS:

The revisions are needed to clarify Department processes that are performed but not codified in law or regulation, such as surrogacy/gestational carrier agreements, changes to a registrant or decedent’s sex, and other more minor amendments. It also establishes processes for laws that were passed in recent years, such as administrative penalties for death certifiers/verifiers and fines for Induced Termination of Pregnancy (ITOP) providers. The amendments will also update and improve policies that presently cause significant hardship for our customers, such as elderly citizens attempting to add their names to unnamed certificates and persons trying to amend their dates of birth. These cases often require court intervention, which is expensive and time-consuming. Other amendments such as to parental titles and regulations governing changes to a registrant’s sex are intended to reduce risk to the agency, particularly as it pertains to out-of-state orders. Finally, all of the updates and general clarifications will allow the Department to carry out its role more effectively as stewards of vital records.

DETERMINATION OF COSTS AND BENEFITS:

Although the need for court-required action can never be eliminated completely, the amendments aim to remove this need as much as possible to benefit customers who currently have to pay attorney fees and complete the challenging steps of obtaining a court order to amend vital records. The administrative penalties process will bring some additional revenue to the Department. However, it is difficult to gauge the exact fiscal impact as the Department will be working with providers over the coming years to help them improve processes for filing certificates in a timely fashion once enforcement does take effect.

UNCERTAINTIES OF ESTIMATES:

As discussed above, the implementation of administrative penalties is unclear how severely it will impact the state or stakeholders.

EFFECT ON THE ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC HEALTH:

The amendments will not have a significant impact on the environment. The impact to public health will be providing clearer requirements and guidelines to the public for the processes they need to obtain their vital records. This will allow for more timely submission of documents and reduce the challenges caused by amendment processes to registrants.