reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
RI Gen L § 23-3-23 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-3 - Vital Records|Section 23-3-23 - Disclosure of records.

§ 23-3-23. Disclosure of records.(a) To protect the integrity of vital records, to ensure their proper use, and to ensure the efficient and proper administration of the vital records system, it shall be unlawful for any person to permit inspection of, or to disclose information contained in, vital records, or to copy, or issue a copy, of all, or part of, any vital record, except as authorized by regulation or as provided for herein.(b) The director of health may authorize, under appropriate safeguards, the disclosure of data contained in vital records for research purposes.(c) Information in vital records indicating that a birth occurred out of wedlock shall not be disclosed, except as provided by regulation, upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction, or until the record becomes a public record as defined by regulations.(d) Appeals from decisions of the custodians of permanent local records refusing to disclose information, or to permit inspection of or copying of records, of persons born one hundred (100) years before the date of inspection, under the authority of this section and regulation issued under this section, shall be made to the state registrar of vital records. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, those records shall be open for research to any member of a legally incorporated genealogy society and those societies shall be permitted to incorporate statistics derived from those records in their publications, upon receipt of permission of the director of health; and provided, further, that no person, except the person whose birth is recorded, his or her issue, parent or guardian, spouse, civil union and/or registered domestic partner, grandparent, or sibling; or attorneys at law, title examiners, or members of legally incorporated genealogical societies in the conduct of their official duties as defined in regulations shall have any access to, or be permitted to, examine the original or any copy of the birth certificate or birth record, of any person in the custody of any registrar of vital records or of the state department of health.(e) Title examiners, attorneys, or members of legally incorporated genealogical societies, in the conduct of their official duties as defined in regulations, shall be allowed to examine death certificates that have been filed with the department of health and/or municipalities. No fees shall be charged to such persons for the searching or viewing of death certificates, but fees for copies pursuant to § 23-1-54 or § 23-3-25 shall apply.History of Section.P.L. 1961, ch. 87, § 1; P.L. 1972, ch. 278, § 1; P.L. 1983, ch. 198, § 2; P.L. 2014, ch. 193, § 1; P.L. 2016, ch. 522, § 1; P.L. 2016, ch. 526, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-3-24 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-3 - Vital Records|Section 23-3-24 - Copies of data from vital records.

§ 23-3-24. Copies of data from vital records.In accordance with § 23-3-23 and the regulations adopted pursuant to that section:(1) The state registrar of vital records shall upon request issue a certified copy of any certificate or record in his or her custody or a part thereof. 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 show the effective date. Any copies issued of a "certificate of foreign birth" shall indicate this fact and show the actual place of birth.(2) The custodian of permanent local records shall upon request issue a certified copy of any certificate or record in his or her custody only in a form that shall be prescribed by the state director of health.(3) A certified copy of a certificate or any part thereof, issued in accordance with subdivision (1) or (2) of this section, shall be considered for all purposes the same as the original, and shall be prima facie evidence of the facts stated in the certificate, 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 or administrative body or official before whom the certificate is offered as evidence.(4) The National Office of Vital Statistics may be furnished copies or data that it may require for national statistics; provided, that the state shall be reimbursed for the cost of furnishing the data; and provided further, that the data shall not be used for other than statistical purposes by the National Office of Vital Records unless so authorized by the state registrar of vital records.(5) Federal, state, local, and other public or private agencies may, upon request, be furnished copies or data for statistical purposes upon terms or conditions that may be prescribed by the state director of health.(6) 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, except as authorized in this chapter or regulations adopted under this chapter.History of Section.G.L. 1896, ch. 100, § 16; G.L. 1909, ch. 121, § 16; G.L. 1923, ch. 166, § 15; G.L. 1909, ch. 166, § 24; P.L. 1923, ch. 436, § 2; G.L. 1938, ch. 268, §§ 14, 23; G.L. 1956, §§ 23-3-31, 23-3-37; G.L. 1956, § 23-3-24; P.L. 1961, ch. 87, § 1; P.L. 1986, ch. 193, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-3-24.1 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-3 - Vital Records|Section 23-3-24.1 - Native Americans - Certified copies of birth records.

§ 23-3-24.1. Native Americans — Certified copies of birth records.Any American Indian or Native American whose certified copy of a birth record contains a racial designation that is incorrect may, without paying a fee, obtain one certified copy of his or her birth record from which the incorrect racial designation has been amended. The person requesting the birth record shall provide satisfactory proof from a tribal authority.History of Section.P.L. 1998, ch. 309, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-3-25.1 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-3 - Vital Records|Section 23-3-25.1 - Veterans' exemption for fees for copies and searches.

§ 23-3-25.1. Veterans' exemption for fees for copies and searches.Any veteran who served honorably in the military or naval service of the United States shall be processed without a charge or fee when making a request for vital statistics regarding a request for his or her own personal records.History of Section.P.L. 1997, ch. 267, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-3-26 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-3 - Vital Records|Section 23-3-26 - Persons required to keep records.

§ 23-3-26. Persons required to keep records.(a) Every person in charge of an institution, as defined in this chapter, shall keep a record of personal particulars and data concerning each person admitted or confined to that institution. This record shall include the information required by the standard certificates of birth, death, and fetal death forms issued under the provisions of this chapter. The record shall be made at the time of admission from information provided by those persons, but when it cannot be so obtained, it 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) When a dead human body 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, date of death, name and address of the person to whom the body is released, date of removal from the institution, or if finally disposed of by the institution, the date, place, and manner of disposition shall be recorded.(c) A funeral director, embalmer, or other person who removes from the place of death or transports or finally disposes of a dead body or fetus, in addition to filing any certificate or other form required by this chapter, shall keep a record which shall identify the body, and information pertaining to his receipt, removal, and delivery of the body that may be prescribed in regulations adopted by the director of health.(d) Records maintained under this section shall be retained for a period of not less than five (5) years and shall be made available for inspection by the state registrar of vital records or his or her representative upon demand.History of Section.P.L. 1961, ch. 87, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-3-27 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-3 - Vital Records|Section 23-3-27 - Duties to furnish information relative to vital events.

§ 23-3-27. Duties to furnish information relative to vital events.Any person having knowledge of the facts shall furnish information that he or she may possess regarding any birth, death, fetal death, marriage, or divorce, upon demand of the state registrar of vital records.History of Section.P.L. 1961, ch. 87, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-3-28 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-3 - Vital Records|Section 23-3-28 - Penalties.

§ 23-3-28. Penalties.(a) (1) Any person who willfully and knowingly makes any false statement in a report, record, or certificate required to be filed under this chapter, or in an application for an amendment of those, or who willfully and knowingly supplies false information intending that this false information be used in the preparation of any report, record, or certificate, or amendment; or(2) Any person who without lawful authority and with the intent to deceive, makes, alters, amends, or mutilates any report, record, or certificate required to be filed under this chapter or a certified copy of any report, record, or certificate; or(3) Any person who willfully and knowingly uses or attempts to use, or furnish to another for use, for any purpose of deception, any certificate, record, report, or certified copy thereof so made, altered, amended, or mutilated; or(4) Any person who with the intention to deceive willfully uses or attempts to use any certificate of birth or certified copy of a record of birth knowing that the certificate or certified copy was issued upon a record which is false in whole or in part or which relates to the birth of another person; or(5) Any person who willfully and knowingly furnishes a certificate of birth or a 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 punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.(b) (1) Any person who knowingly transports and accepts for transportation, interment, or other disposition a dead body without an accompanying permit as provided in this chapter; or(2) Any person who refuses to provide information required by this chapter; or(3) Any person who willfully neglects or violates any of the provisions of this chapter or refuses to perform any of the duties imposed upon him by this chapter;Shall be punished by a fine of not less than twenty-five dollars ($25.00) nor more than one hundred dollars ($100) or be imprisoned for not more than thirty (30) days, or by both fine and imprisonment.History of Section.G.L. 1896, ch. 100, § 13; G.L. 1909, ch. 121, § 13; P.L. 1921, ch. 2096, § 5; G.L. 1923, ch. 166, § 12; G.L. 1938, ch. 268, § 11; G.L. 1956, § 23-3-14; G.L., § 23-3-28; P.L. 1961, ch. 87, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-3-29 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-3 - Vital Records|Section 23-3-29 - Division of vital records and state registrar of vital records.

§ 23-3-29. Division of vital records and state registrar of vital records.Wherever in the general or public laws there appear the words "division of vital statistics" and the words "state registrar of vital statistics" in relation to the Rhode Island department of health, the word "records" shall be substituted for the word "statistics".History of Section.P.L. 1988, ch. 95, § 1; P.L. 1988, ch. 276, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-4-1 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-1 - Definitions.

§ 23-4-1. Definitions.(a) "Assistant medical examiner" means a duly licensed doctor of medicine or osteopathy appointed to assist the office of state medical examiners on a part-time basis.(b) "Autopsy" means the dissection of a dead body and the removal and examination of bone, tissue, organs, and foreign objects for the purpose of determining the condition of the body and the cause and the manner of the death.(c) "Cause of death" means the agent that has directly or indirectly resulted in a death.(d) "Inquest" means an official judicial inquiry before a medical examiner and/or medical examiners jury for the purpose of determining the manner of death.(e) "Manner of death" means the means or fatal agency that caused a death.(f) "Postmortem examination" means examination after death and includes an examination of the dead body and surroundings by an agent of the office of state medical examiners but does not include dissection of the body for any purpose.(g) "Work product" means preliminary drafts, notes, impressions, memoranda, working papers, and similar documents of a governmental entity, whether in electronic or other format.History of Section.P.L. 1973, ch. 169, § 1; P.L. 2018, ch. 82, § 1; P.L. 2018, ch. 92, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-4-2 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-2 - Establishment of office.

§ 23-4-2. Establishment of office.(a) There is established in the department of health the office of state medical examiners. The director of health, with the advice of the state medical examiners commission, is authorized to adopt, amend, promulgate, and enforce rules and regulations and standards that may be designed to further the accomplishment of the purposes of this chapter.(b) The office of state medical examiners shall obtain and maintain accreditation by the National Association of Medical Examiners or other national accrediting organization in the field of forensic medicine and pathology.History of Section.P.L. 1973, ch. 169, § 1; P.L. 1992, ch. 400, § 1; P.L. 2005, ch. 122, § 1; P.L. 2005, ch. 169, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-4-3.1 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-3.1 - Immunity.

§ 23-4-3.1. Immunity.No member of the multidisciplinary teams shall be subject to arrest, prosecution, or penalty in any manner, or denied any right or privilege, including, but not limited to, civil penalty or disciplinary action by a business, occupational, or professional licensing board or entity (and, for members who are state employees, termination or loss of employee or pension benefits), for acting in accordance with § 23-4-3.History of Section.P.L. 2018, ch. 82, § 2; P.L. 2018, ch. 92, § 2; P.L. 2019, ch. 106, § 1; P.L. 2019, ch. 139, § 1; P.L. 2019, ch. 308, art. 2, § 6.
RI Gen L § 23-4-4 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-4 - Jurisdiction.

§ 23-4-4. Jurisdiction.The office of state medical examiners shall have the authority to make postmortem examinations, to undertake inquests, and to perform autopsies where there may be in its judgment a reasonable belief that the manner of death could be pronounced as:(1) Death by a homicide, suicide, or casualty;(2) Death due to a criminal abortion;(3) Death due to an accident involving lack of due care on the part of a person other than the deceased;(4) Death which is the immediate or remote consequences of any physical or toxic injury incurred while the deceased person was employed;(5) Death due to the use of addictive or unidentifiable chemical agents; or(6) Death due to an infectious agent capable of spreading an epidemic within the state.History of Section.P.L. 1973, ch. 169, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-4-5 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-5 - Chief medical examiner - Assistants and other staff.

§ 23-4-5. Chief medical examiner — Assistants and other staff.(a) The office shall be under the immediate supervision of a chief, who shall be known as the "chief medical examiner" and who shall be a physician licensed under the provisions of chapter 37 of title 5, and a qualified pathologist certified by the American Board of Pathology and who has had forensic training or experience. He or she shall be appointed by the director of health as shall the deputy chief medical examiner with the advice of the medical examiner's commission. The chief medical examiner shall be in the unclassified service and the deputy chief medical examiner shall be in the classified service.(b) The chief medical examiner shall appoint, with the approval of the director of health, assistant medical examiners and shall hire other staff as necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter.(c) Persons employed full time at the time of enactment of this chapter within the division of medical examiners in the department of the attorney general shall be transferred to the office of state medical examiners with their former rights and privileges of employment. For members eligible to retire on or before June 30, 2012, such members shall be eligible for retirement benefits after the age of fifty (50) years and service of twenty (20) years, including service within the division of medical examiners. For members eligible to retire on or after July 1, 2012, such members shall be eligible for retirement benefits in accordance with chapters 8 through 10 of title 36.History of Section.P.L. 1973, ch. 169, § 1; P.L. 1992, ch. 400, § 1; P.L. 2011, ch. 408, § 21; P.L. 2011, ch. 409, § 21.
RI Gen L § 23-4-8 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-8 - Procedure for investigation of deaths.

§ 23-4-8. Procedure for investigation of deaths.(a) When the office of state medical examiners has notice that there has been found or is lying within this state the body of a person who is supposed to have come to his or her death by violence, or in any manner as stated in § 23-4-7, an agent of the office of state medical examiners shall immediately proceed to the place where the body lies and take charge of it, view it, and make personal inquiry into the cause and manner of death. If the body is found at the residence of the deceased, the agent of the office of state medical examiners shall not remove the body from the residence unless necessary for further postmortem examination or autopsy.(b) A health care facility shall disclose any and all information in its possession requested by the state medical examiner or his or her agent in connection with the investigation of the death of a current or former patient to the extent necessary to assist the medical examiner in determining the cause of death.History of Section.P.L. 1973, ch. 169, § 1; P.L. 1988, ch. 351, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-4-9 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-9 - Deaths in public places.

§ 23-4-9. Deaths in public places.In the event that a person dies suddenly on a public highway or elsewhere in the public view and the death appears to be from natural causes or the result of injuries received from a highway accident, the state police or any superior officer of the local police or an agent of the office of state medical examiners may order the removal of the body from the place of death, upon completion of their investigation as to the cause and manner of death, to the funeral home designated by a family representative of the deceased or to the state morgue or any hospital.History of Section.P.L. 1973, ch. 169, § 1.
RI Gen L § 23-4-10 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-10 - Disposition of deceased bodies.

§ 23-4-10. Disposition of deceased bodies.(a) The office of state medical examiners shall, after any postmortem examination or any autopsy, promptly release the deceased body to the relatives, representatives or domestic partners of the deceased. The cost of transporting the deceased body to a mortuary within the state of the relatives' or domestic partner's choice shall be borne by the state if the autopsy was required to be performed as provided in this chapter. If there are no known relatives, representatives or domestic partners, the office of state medical examiners, after reasonable public notices, shall cause the body of the deceased person to be buried. The general treasurer of the state shall have first priority in recovering the expenses of burial from the estate of the deceased person.(b) For the purpose of this chapter, "domestic partner" shall be defined as a person who, prior to the decedent's death, was in an exclusive, intimate and committed relationship with the decedent, and who certifies by affidavit that their relationship met the following qualifications:(1) Both partners were at least eighteen (18) years of age and were mentally competent to contract;(2) Neither partner is married to anyone else;(3) Partners were not related by blood to a degree which would prohibit marriage in the state of Rhode Island;(4) Partners resided together and had resided together for at least one year at the time of death; and(5) Partners were financially interdependent as evidenced by at least two (2) of the following:(i) Domestic partnership agreement or relationship contract;(ii) Joint mortgage or joint ownership of primary residence;(iii) Two (2) of the following:(A) Joint ownership of motor vehicle;(B) Joint checking account;(C) Joint credit account;(D) Joint lease; and/or(iv) The domestic partner had been designated as a beneficiary for the decedent's will, retirement contract or life insurance.History of Section.P.L. 1973, ch. 169, § 1; P.L. 1980, ch. 306, § 1; P.L. 2009, ch. 369, § 2; P.L. 2009, ch. 385, § 2.
RI Gen L § 23-4-11 (2021)
2021 Rhode Island General Laws|Title 23 - Health and Safety|Chapter 23-4 - Office of State Medical Examiners|Section 23-4-11 - Effects and property of deceased.

§ 23-4-11. Effects and property of deceased.An agent of the office of state medical examiners, as the case may be, may take into his or her possession all articles and property of the deceased on or about the body and shall deliver them to the office of the chief medical examiner if an autopsy or postmortem examination is ordered, but shall otherwise deliver them to a member of the family taking a receipt for them. Provided, however, any letter, note, or any other written instrument, the contents of which relate to the manner or cause of the death of the deceased, shall be permanently retained in the files of the office. If an autopsy is ordered, the chief medical examiner shall upon completion of the investigation deliver all other articles or property to a member of the family of the deceased taking a receipt from that family member and, if any dispute exists among members of the family, he or she shall hold the other articles or property for the executor or administrator of the estate of the deceased when appointed. In the event that death shall have occurred in a hotel or other public place where possessions of the deceased may be lying, an agent of the office of state medical examiners shall make suitable arrangements for the protection of the property.History of Section.P.L. 1973, ch. 169, § 1.