BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                     AB 778


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          Date of Hearing:  April 8, 2015


                       ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT


                              Brian Maienschein, Chair


          AB 778  
          Maienschein - As Amended March 26, 2015


          SUBJECT:  Fees:  military service records.


          SUMMARY:  Allows county recorders to provide certified copies of  
          military discharge documents when those documents are requested  
          in writing or via fax or digitized image.  Specifically, this  
          bill:  


          1)Allows a county recorder to furnish a certified copy of any  
            discharge, certificate of service, certificate of satisfactory  
            service, notice of separation, or report of separation of any  
            member of the Armed Forces of the United States (military  
            discharge document) to an applicant pursuant to existing law  
            if the recorder receives a written, faxed, or digitized image  
            of a request for military discharge documents that is  
            accompanied by a notarized statement sworn under penalty of  
            perjury, or a faxed copy or digitized image of a notarized  
            statement sworn under penalty of perjury, that the requester  
            meets one of the descriptions of persons who are allowed to  
            receive military discharge documents pursuant to existing law.



          2)Requires a faxed or digitized image of the notary  
            acknowledgment accompanying a faxed request for a certified  








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            copy of any military discharge documents received pursuant to  
            1), above, to be legible.  



          3)Prohibits a recorder from providing a certified copy requested  
            pursuant to 1), above, if the notary's seal is not  
            photographically reproducible, or does not 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. 



          4)Provides that, if a request for a certified copy of any  
            military discharge documents 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.



          5)Defines "digitized image" of a request to mean an image of an  
            original paper request for a certified copy of any military  
            discharge documents.


          EXISTING LAW:  


          1)Provides, under the Public Records Act, that public records of  
            state and local public agencies are open to inspection and  
            copying upon request and payment of costs.  An agency may  
            withhold disclosure of a record only where the record is  
            statutorily exempt from disclosure or where the public  








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            interest in not disclosing the record clearly outweighs the  
            public interest in disclosing the record.  This balancing test  
            is done on a case-by-case basis.  






          2)Requires, if any military veteran or other authorized person  
            requests recordation of a military discharge document, the  
            county recorder to require the person requesting recordation  
            to sign a form stating that the person acknowledges that he or  
            she is informed that by recording the military discharge  
            document, all information referenced within it becomes part of  
            the official record of the county, and that the information is  
            open to inspection by any person.



          3)Prohibits a public entity from charging a fee for recording,  
            indexing, or issuing certified copies of military records of  
            any member of the armed forces, and for furnishing copies of  
            or searching for records related to a veteran's claim for  
            veterans' benefits.  



          4)Provides that a certified copy of a military discharge  
            document may be made available only to one of the following:



             a)   The person who is the subject of the record, upon  
               presentation of proper photo identification;



             b)   A family member or legal representative of the person  








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               who is the subject of the record, upon presentation of  
               proper photo identification and certification of their  
               relationship to the subject of the record;



             c)   A county office that provides veterans' benefits  
               services, upon written request of that office; and,



             d)   A United States official, upon written request of that  
               official.  



          5)States that no copy of a recorded military discharge document  
            may be issued except as provided above.


          FISCAL EFFECT:  This bill is keyed fiscal and contains a  
          state-mandated local program.


          COMMENTS:  


          1)Bill Summary.  This bill allows county recorders to furnish  
            certified copies of military discharge documents to authorized  
            persons who request those records in writing, via fax or via a  
            digitized image (scanned documents via email.)  The bill  
            requires such requests to be accompanied by a notarized  
            statement attesting that the requester is allowed under  
            current law to request copies of these documents, and requires  
            the statement to be legible.  If a request is made in person,  
            this bill requires the official to take a sworn statement that  
            the requester is allowed under current law to request copies  
            of these documents.  This bill is sponsored by the County  
            Recorders' Association of California.








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          2)Author's Statement.  According to the author, "AB 778 will  
            grant veterans and their families' greater access to certified  
            copies of their military service records by allowing military  
            service records to be requested in the same manner as vital  
            records."



          3)Background.  U.S. veterans are issued a certificate of release  
            or discharge from active duty by the U.S. Department of  
            Defense when a military service member retires, separates from  
            service, or is discharged from active-duty military service.   
            This "Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty" is  
            commonly referred to as a "DD214."  The DD214 contains  
            information needed to verify military service for benefits,  
            employment, retirements, funeral honors, and membership in  
            veterans' organizations.



            California law allows veterans and other specified persons to  
            record their DD214s at the local county recorder's office.   
            Before recording, the veteran must sign a statement  
            acknowledging that, by recording the document, the DD214 will  
            become a public document.  Recording a DD214 is generally done  
            to prevent the loss of the document and to provide easy access  
            to certified copies as necessary.  An additional reason to  
            record is to allow family members to preserve a loved one's  
            military service history.  Regardless of the purpose,  
            recording is completely discretionary.  There is no  
            requirement that a veteran record the document with the county  
            recorder's office. 












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            AB 1179 (Parra), Chapter 6, Statutes of 2004, prohibited  
            county recorders from providing certified copies of military  
            discharge documents except to specified persons, and allowed  
            county recorders to issue certified copies of military  
            discharge documents when requested in writing or via fax, as  
            specified.  AB 464 (Daly), Chapter 78, Statutes of 2013,  
            allowed requests for vital records (birth, death and marriage  
            certificates) to be made using digitized images, among other  
            provisions.  The digitized request must be accompanied by a  
            notarized statement, sworn under penalty of perjury, that the  
            requester is a person authorized to receive the document(s).   
            The bill also deleted, inadvertently, provisions allowing  
            county recorders to issue certified copies of military  
            discharge documents when requested in writing or via fax.   
            This bill reinstates that prior law authorization, and allows  
            a new authorization to issue certified copies of military  
            discharge documents when requested via digitized image.





          4)Prior Legislation.  AB 2215 (Maienschein), Chapter 651,  
            Statutes of 2014, allowed a family member or a legal  
            representative of a military veteran to request county  
            recordation of that veteran's military discharge document, and  
            required such persons to sign a specified statement when doing  
            so.


            AB 464 (Daly), Chapter 78, Statutes of 2013, allowed requests  
            for vital records (birth, death and marriage certificates) to  
            be made using digitized images, among other provisions.


            AB 1179 (Parra), Chapter 6, Statutes of 2004, prohibited  
            county recorders from providing certified copies of military  
            discharge documents except to specified persons, and allowed  








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            county recorders to issue certified copies of military  
            discharge documents when requested in writing or via fax, as  
            specified.





          5)State Mandate.  This bill is keyed a state mandate, which  
            means the state could be required to reimburse local agencies  
            and school districts for implementing the bill's provisions if  
            the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill  
            contains costs mandated by the state.  In general, county  
            recorders are allowed to charge fees for recording documents,  
            providing certified copies of documents, and so forth.   
            However, current law does not allow fees for services rendered  
            in connection with military discharge documents.


          6)Technical Amendments.  In order to maintain consistency in  
            terminology, the author may wish to adopt the following  
            technical amendments:


             a)   On page 3, in line 23, strike out "applicant" and insert  
               "requester"


             b)   On page 3, in line 25, strike out "notary  
               acknowledgement" and insert "notarized statement"


             c)   On page 3, in line 26, after "faxed" insert "or  
               digitized image of a"


             d)   On page 4, in line 3, after "authorized person" insert  
               "pursuant to subdivision (b)"









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          7)Arguments in Support.  The County Recorders' Association of  
            California, in support, states, "This bill will provide  
            veterans greater access to certified copies of military  
            service records, allowing military service records to be  
            requested in the same manner as birth, death and marriage  
            records?This bill will provide greater access and convenience  
            for the public benefit in a manner that County Recorders can  
            easily accommodate."



          8)Arguments in Opposition.  None on file.


          REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:




          Support


          County Recorders' Association of California [SPONSOR]


          American Legion - Department of California


          AMVETS - Department of California


          California Association of County Veterans Service Officers


          California State Commanders Veterans Council


          Military Officers Association of America, California Council of  








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          Chapters


          VFW - Department of California




          Opposition


          None on file




          Analysis Prepared by:Angela Mapp / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958