California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 464

Introduced by Assembly Member Daly

February 19, 2013

An act to amend Sections 1188 and 1195 of the Civil Code, to amend Section 103526 of the Health and Safety Code, and to amend Section 210 of the Probate Code, relating to vital records.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 464, as introduced, Daly. Vital records.

Under existing law, a certified copy of a birth, death, marriage or military service record may only be supplied by the State Registrar, local registrar, or county recorder to an authorized person, as defined, who submits a written or faxed request accompanied by a notarized statement sworn under penalty of perjury that the applicant is an authorized person.

This bill would additionally authorize the request and the notarized statement to be a digitized image, as defined. The bill would remove the application of these provisions to requests for certified copies of a military service record as requests for certified copies of those records are also subject to different provisions of existing law.

Existing law authorizes proof of the execution of an instrument by certain persons and prescribes the form for that proof. Existing law authorizes the use of a specified form as a certificate for proof of execution of an instrument.

This bill would instead require the specified form to be used as a certificate for proof of execution of an instrument, and would make several changes to the form.

Existing law authorizes, if title to real property is affected by the death of a person, any person to record evidence of the death in the county in which the property is located by providing specified documents, which may include, among other things, a certified copy of a record of the death, as specified.

This bill would provide that a certified copy of a record of death includes a certified copy or informational certified copy issued by the State Registrar, local registrar, or county recorder pursuant to specified provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 1188 of the Civil Code is amended to
read:

1188.  

An officer taking the acknowledgment of an instrument
shall endorse thereon or attach thereto a certificate begin delete substantially
in the form prescribed in end delete begin insert pursuant to end insert Section 1189.

SEC. 2.  

Section 1195 of the Civil Code is amended to read:

1195.  

(a) Proof of the execution of an instrument, when not
acknowledged, may be made by any of the following:

(1) By the party executing it, or either of them.

(2) By a subscribing witness.

(3) By other witnesses, in cases mentioned in Section 1198.

(b) (1)  Proof of the execution of a power of attorney, grant
deed, mortgage, deed of trust, quitclaim deed, security agreement,
or any instrument affecting real property is not permitted pursuant
to Section 27287 of the Government Code, though proof of the
execution of a trustee’s deed or deed of reconveyance is permitted.

(2) Proof of the execution for any instrument requiring a notary
public to obtain a thumbprint from the party signing the document
in the notary public’s journal is not permitted.

(c) Any certificate for proof of execution taken within this state
begin delete may end delete begin insert shall end insert be in the following begin delete form, although the use of other,
substantially similar forms is not precluded end delete begin insert form end insert :

 

State of California	⎫	ss.
County of	⎭

 

On ____ (date), before me, begin delete the undersigned, a notary public end delete
begin delete end delete
begin delete for the state, end delete begin insert _____ (name and title of officer), end insert personally appeared ____ (name
of subscribing witness), proved to me to be the person whose name is subscribed
to the within instrument, as a witness thereto, on the oath of ____ (name of
credible witness), a credible witness who is known to me and provided a
satisfactory identifying document. ____ (name of subscribing witness), being
by me duly sworn, said that he/she was present and saw/heard ____ (name[s]
of principal[s]), the same person(s) described in and whose name(s) is/are
subscribed to the within or attached instrument in his/her/their authorized
capacity(ies) as (a) party(ies) thereto, execute or acknowledge executing the
same, and that said affiant subscribed his/her name to the within or attached
instrument as a witness at the request of ____ (name[s] of principal[s]).

 

WITNESS my hand and official seal.
Signature    begin delete (Notary public seal) end delete begin insert (Seal) end insert

 

SEC. 3.  

Section 103526 of the Health and Safety Code is
amended to read:

103526.  

(a)  begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert If the State Registrar, local registrar, or county
recorder receives a begin delete written or faxed end delete begin insert written, faxed, or digitized
image of a end insert request for a certified copy of a birth, death, or marriage
record pursuant to Section begin delete 103525, or a military service record
pursuant to Section 6107 of the Government Code, end delete begin insert 103525 end insert that is
accompanied by a notarized statement sworn under penalty of
perjury, or a faxed copy begin insert or digitized image end insert of a notarized statement
sworn under penalty of perjury, that the requester is an authorized
person, as defined in this section, that official may furnish a
certified copy to the applicant begin delete in accordance with end delete begin insert pursuant to end insert
Section 103525 begin delete and in accordance with Section 6107 of the
Government Code. If a written request for a certified copy of a
military service record is submitted to a county recorder by fax,
the county recorder may furnish a certified copy of the military
record to the applicant in accordance with Section 103525 end delete . A faxed
begin insert or digitized image of the end insert notary acknowledgment accompanying
a faxed request received pursuant to this subdivision for a certified
copy of a birth, death, or marriage record begin delete or a military service
record end delete shall be legible and, if the notary’s seal is not
photographically reproducible, show the name of the notary, the
county of the notary’s principal place of business, the notary’s
telephone number, the notary’s registration number, and the
notary’s commission expiration date typed or printed in a manner
that is photographically reproducible below, or immediately
adjacent to, the notary’s signature in the acknowledgment. If a
request for a certified copy of a birth, death, or marriage record is
made in person, the official shall take a statement sworn under
penalty of perjury that the requester is signing his or her own legal
name and is an authorized person, and that official may then furnish
a certified copy to the applicant.

begin insert

(2) For purposes of this subdivision, “digitized image” means
an image of an original paper request for a certified copy of a
birth, death, or marriage record.

end insert

(b) (1) If the person requesting a certified copy of a birth, death,
or nonconfidential marriage record is not an authorized person or
is an authorized person who is otherwise unable to satisfy the
requirements of subdivision (a), the certified copy provided to the
applicant shall be an informational certified copy and shall display
a legend that states “INFORMATIONAL, NOT A VALID
DOCUMENT TO ESTABLISH IDENTITY.” The legend shall
be placed on the certificate in a manner that will not conceal
information.

(2) If the person requesting a certified copy of a confidential
marriage record is not an authorized person or is an authorized
person who is otherwise unable to satisfy the requirements of
subdivision (a), the official shall not release a certified copy of the
confidential marriage record unless otherwise authorized by law.

(c) For purposes of this section, an “authorized person” means:

(1) For purposes of requests for certified copies of confidential
marriage records, only a party to the confidential marriage.

(2) For purposes of requests for certified copies of birth, death,
or nonconfidential marriage records, a person who is any of the
following:

(A) The registrant or a parent or legal guardian of the registrant.

(B) A party entitled to receive the record as a result of a court
order, or an attorney or a licensed adoption agency seeking the
birth record in order to comply with the requirements of Section
3140 or 7603 of the Family Code.

(C) A member of a law enforcement agency or a representative
of another governmental agency, as provided by law, who is
conducting official business.

(D) A child, grandparent, grandchild, sibling, spouse, or
domestic partner of the registrant.

(E) An attorney representing the registrant or the registrant’s
estate, or any person or agency empowered by statute or appointed
by a court to act on behalf of the registrant or the registrant’s estate.

(F) An agent or employee of a funeral establishment who acts
within the course and scope of his or her employment and who
orders certified copies of a death certificate on behalf of any
individual specified in paragraphs (1) to (5), inclusive, of
subdivision (a) of Section 7100.

(d) A person who asks the agent or employee of a funeral
establishment to request a death certificate on his or her behalf
warrants the truthfulness of his or her relationship to the decedent,
and is personally liable for all damages occasioned by, or resulting
from, a breach of that warranty.

(e) Notwithstanding any other law:

(1) A member of a law enforcement agency or a representative
of a state or local government agency, as provided by law, who
orders a copy of a record to which subdivision (a) applies in
conducting official business shall not be required to provide the
notarized statement required by subdivision (a).

(2) An agent or employee of a funeral establishment who acts
within the course and scope of his or her employment and who
orders death certificates on behalf of individuals specified in
paragraphs (1) to (5), inclusive, of subdivision (a) of Section 7100
shall not be required to provide the notarized statement required
by subdivision (a).

(f) Informational certified copies of birth and death certificates
issued pursuant to subdivision (b) shall only be printed from the
single statewide database prepared by the State Registrar and shall
be electronically redacted to remove any signatures for purposes
of compliance with this section. Local registrars and county
recorders shall not issue informational certified copies of birth and
death certificates from a source other than the statewide database
prepared by the State Registrar. This subdivision shall become
operative on July 1, 2007, but only after the statewide database
becomes operational and the full calendar year of the birth and
death indices and images is entered into the statewide database
and is available for the respective year of the birth or death
certificate for which an informational copy is requested. The State
Registrar shall provide written notification to local registrars and
county recorders as soon as a year becomes available for issuance
from the statewide database.

SEC. 4.  

Section 210 of the Probate Code is amended to read:

210.  

If title to real property is affected by the death of a person,
any person may record in the county in which the property is
located any of the following documents establishing the fact of
the death:

(a) An affidavit of death executed by a person having knowledge
of the facts. The affidavit shall include a particular description of
the real property and an attested or certified copy of a record of
the death made and filed in a designated public office as required
by law. begin insert For purposes of this subdivision, a certified copy issued
in this state shall include any copy issued pursuant to Section
103525 of, subdivision (a) of Section 103526 of, or paragraph (1)
of subdivision (b) of Section 103526 of, the Health and Safety
Code. end insert

(b) A certified copy of a court order that determines the fact of
death made pursuant to Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 200)
or pursuant to another statute that provides for a determination of
the fact of death.