S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4805
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               March 2, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. CARLUCCI -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to the implementation
   of an electronic death registration system
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 4148 of the public health law, as added by chapter
 352 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as follows:
   § 4148. Electronic death registration system.  1.  The  department  is
 hereby  authorized  and directed to design, FULLY implement and maintain
 an electronic death registration system for collecting, storing, record-
 ing, transmitting, amending, correcting and authenticating  information,
 as  necessary  and  appropriate to complete a death registration, and to
 generate such documents as determined by the department in relation to a
 death occurring in this state. As part of the design and FULL  implemen-
 tation  of  the system established by this section, the department shall
 consult with all persons authorized to use such  system  to  the  extent
 practicable  and feasible. The payment referenced in subdivision five of
 this section shall be collected for each burial or removal permit issued
 [on or after the effective date of this section] PRIOR TO FULL IMPLEMEN-
 TATION, BUT IN NO CIRCUMSTANCE ON OR BEFORE DECEMBER  THIRTY-FIRST,  TWO
 THOUSAND  SEVENTEEN  from the REGISTERED FUNERAL FIRM REPRESENTED BY THE
 licensed funeral director or undertaker to whom such permit  is  issued,
 in  the  manner specified by the department and shall be used solely for
 the purpose set forth in subdivision five of  this  section.  Except  as
 specifically  provided  in this section, the existing general duties of,
 and remuneration received by, local registrars in accepting  and  filing
 certificates of death and issuing burial and removal permits pursuant to
 any  statute  or  regulation  shall  be  maintained,  and not altered or
 abridged in any way by this section.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09971-01-7
              

 S. 4805                             2
 
   2. Commencing on the implementation date, the department shall require
 that deaths occurring within this state must  be  registered  using  the
 electronic  death  registration  system  established  in  this  section.
 [Electronic death registration may be phased in, as  determined  by  the
 commissioner,  for  deaths  occurring  in the state until the electronic
 death registration system is fully implemented in the state.] As used in
 this section, "implementation date" means the first day  in  January  in
 the second year after this section becomes a law[, or as soon thereafter
 as  the  commissioner reasonably determines by regulation is feasible in
 light of the intent of this  section].    "FULLY  IMPLEMENT"  AND  "FULL
 IMPLEMENTATION"  MEANS  WHEN ALL PERSONS REQUIRED TO REGISTER A DEATH OR
 FILE A CERTIFICATE OF DEATH UNDER THIS ARTICLE ARE COLLECTING,  STORING,
 RECORDING,  TRANSMITTING, AMENDING, CORRECTING AND AUTHENTICATING INFOR-
 MATION ELECTRONICALLY, AS NECESSARY AND APPROPRIATE, TO COMPLETE A DEATH
 REGISTRATION AND FILE A CERTIFICATE OF DEATH, USING THE ELECTRONIC DEATH
 REGISTRATION SYSTEM ESTABLISHED AND REQUIRED BY THIS SECTION.
   3. Commencing on the implementation  date,  all  persons  required  to
 register  a death or file a certificate of death under this article, and
 such others as may be authorized by the commissioner, shall have  access
 to  the electronic death registration system for the purpose of entering
 information required to execute, complete  and  file  a  certificate  of
 death or to retrieve such information or generate documentation from the
 electronic  death registration system. The confidentiality provisions in
 section forty-one hundred forty-seven  of  this  title  shall  apply  to
 information maintained in this system.
   4. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, commencing on
 or  after  January  first, two thousand fifteen[, or on such date deter-
 mined by the commissioner pursuant to subdivision two of this  section,]
 any  requirement  of  this  title for a signature of any person shall be
 deemed satisfied by the use by such person of digital signature provided
 such person is authorized in accordance with this  section  to  use  the
 electronic death registration system.
   5. [Licensed funeral directors and undertakers] UNTIL FULL IMPLEMENTA-
 TION, BEFORE AND PRIOR TO DECEMBER THIRTY-FIRST, TWO THOUSAND SEVENTEEN,
 REGISTERED FUNERAL FIRMS shall support the establishment and maintenance
 of  the electronic death registration system through a payment, tendered
 for each burial and removal permit issued to a licensed funeral director
 or undertaker, in the amount  of  twenty  dollars,  provided  that  such
 payment shall be considered a cost of operation and the funeral director
 or  undertaker  shall  not  charge  any  additional  fee related to such
 payment for funeral or other services.  NO PAYMENT UNDER  THIS  SUBDIVI-
 SION  SHALL  BE  REQUIRED  ON  OR  AFTER FULL UTILIZATION OR ON OR AFTER
 DECEMBER THIRTY-FIRST, TWO THOUSAND SEVENTEEN.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.