Texas Government Code - Section 552.115. Exception: Birth And Death Records
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§ 552.115. EXCEPTION: BIRTH AND DEATH RECORDS. (a) A
birth or death record maintained by the bureau of vital statistics
of the Texas Department of Health or a local registration official
is excepted from the requirements of Section 552.021, except that:
(1) a birth record is public information and available
to the public on and after the 75th anniversary of the date of birth
as shown on the record filed with the bureau of vital statistics or
local registration official;
(2) a death record is public information and available
to the public on and after the 25th anniversary of the date of death
as shown on the record filed with the bureau of vital statistics or
local registration official;
(3) a general birth index or a general death index
established or maintained by the bureau of vital statistics or a
local registration official is public information and available to
the public to the extent the index relates to a birth record or
death record that is public information and available to the public
under Subdivision (1) or (2);
(4) a summary birth index or a summary death index
prepared or maintained by the bureau of vital statistics or a local
registration official is public information and available to the
public; and
(5) a birth or death record is available to the chief
executive officer of a home-rule municipality or the officer's
designee if:
(A) the record is used only to identify a
property owner or other person to whom the municipality is required
to give notice when enforcing a state statute or an ordinance;
(B) the municipality has exercised due diligence
in the manner described by Section 54.035(e), Local Government
Code, to identify the person; and
(C) the officer or designee signs a
confidentiality agreement that requires that:
(i) the information not be disclosed
outside the office of the officer or designee, or within the office
for a purpose other than the purpose described by Paragraph (A);
(ii) the information be labeled as
confidential;
(iii) the information be kept securely;
and
(iv) the number of copies made of the
information or the notes taken from the information that implicate
the confidential nature of the information be controlled, with all
copies or notes that are not destroyed or returned remaining
confidential and subject to the confidentiality agreement.
(b) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a general birth index
or a summary birth index is not public information and is not
available to the public if:
(1) the fact of an adoption or paternity determination
can be revealed by the index; or
(2) the index contains specific identifying
information relating to the parents of a child who is the subject of
an adoption placement.
(c) Subsection (a)(1) does not apply to the microfilming
agreement entered into by the Genealogical Society of Utah, a
nonprofit corporation organized under the laws of the State of
Utah, and the Archives and Information Services Division of the
Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
(d) For the purposes of fulfilling the terms of the
agreement in Subsection (c), the Genealogical Society of Utah shall
have access to birth records on and after the 50th anniversary of
the date of birth as shown on the record filed with the bureau of
vital statistics or local registration official, but such birth
records shall not be made available to the public until the 75th
anniversary of the date of birth as shown on the record.
Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 268, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.
Amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 706, § 1, eff. Aug. 30,
1999; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 413, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2001;
Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1192, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
Section: 552.108 552.109 552.110 552.111 552.112 552.113 552.114 552.115 552.116 552.117 552.1175 552.118 552.119 552.120 552.121
Last modified: August 11, 2007
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