NY State Senate Bill 2019-S912

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 09, 2019	referred to health

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2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Health
Law Section:: Public Health Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §4148, Pub Health L
Versions Introduced in 2017-2018 Legislative Session:: S7630

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to the implementation of an electronic death registration system; provides that a payment shall be collected for each burial or removal permit issued electronically.

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S912

SPONSOR: YOUNG
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law, in relation to the implementation
of an electronic death registration system

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To provide that fees charged prospectively to fund the establishment and
use of the NYS Electronic Death Registration System (EDRS)shall only be
collected in instances where the death certificate is actually issued
electronically.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Subdivisions one and five of Section 4148 of the Public
Health Law are amended to provide that the fee established to fund the
EDRS system need only be paid in instances where the death certificate
is actually electronically issued to a funeral director.

Section 2. Provides that this act shall take effect immediately.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The legal and practical responsibility for coordinating the current
manual process of ensuring the completion and filing of each death
certificate within 72 hours after a death falls upon funeral directors.
The very cumbersome and time-consuming nature of this process needlessly
takes valuable time away from a funeral director that could, and should,
be dedicated to serving the needs of those who have just suffered the
loss of a cherished family member or other loved one. As a result, a law
was enacted in 2013 to require the development and implementation of a
NYS EDRS with funeral firms stepping forward to agree to fund this
system. (Such systems are already being fully used in New York City,
which has its own system, and in most states). The 2013 law required
implementation of NYS EDRS by January 1, 2015.

While progress has been made in some quarters of the state to fully
implement EDRS, it is evident that certain stakeholders in various parts
of the state have not prioritized converting to EDRS from the archaic
manual system. The process of filing death certificates requires the
active collaboration of many parties, and, without the commitment and
participation of all these important parties, EDRS simply cannot fully
be implemented and serve as intended.

This bill improves upon the original law by providing that in the future
"implementation" of EDRS throughout the state the users of the system
shall only be assessed the EDRS implementation fee when they are actual-
ly issued a permit pursuant to the EDRS system.  The State has collected
approximately $8 million since 2013 from funeral firms to develop and
implement EDRS, well more than enough to do so. In addition, birth
certificates have been filed electronically in NYS for several years.
This bill will serve as an encouragement for the full implementation of
EDRS.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2018: S.7630-B Amend and Recommit to Rules

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None to state if EDRS is enacted as originally required in statute.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    912
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              January 9, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  YOUNG, ADDABBO, FUNKE, GALLIVAN, HELMING, O'MARA,
   SEWARD -- 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. Subdivisions 1 and 5 of section 4148 of the  public  health
 law, as added by chapter 352 of the laws of 2013, are amended to read as
 follows:
   1.  The department is hereby authorized and directed to design, imple-
 ment and maintain an electronic death registration system  for  collect-
 ing,  storing, recording, transmitting, amending, correcting and authen-
 ticating 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 implementation 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, PROVIDED SUCH BURIAL OR REMOVAL PERMIT IS ISSUED
 ELECTRONICALLY, on or after the effective date of this section from  the
 licensed  funeral  director  or undertaker to whom such permit is issued
 THROUGH THE ELECTRONIC DEATH REGISTRATION SYSTEM, in the  manner  speci-
 fied  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 remunera-
 tion 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.

                                                            LBD04031-01-9

 S. 912                              2
 
   5. Licensed funeral directors and undertakers shall support the estab-
 lishment  and  maintenance  of  the electronic death registration system
 through a payment, tendered for each burial and removal  permit  issued,
 PROVIDED  SUCH  BURIAL  OR REMOVAL PERMIT IS ISSUED ELECTRONICALLY, to a
 licensed  funeral  director  or  undertaker THROUGH THE ELECTRONIC DEATH
 REGISTRATION SYSTEM, 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.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S912

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

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2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

Catharine Young

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

Actions

co-Sponsors

Joseph P. Addabbo Jr.

Rich Funke

Patrick M. Gallivan

Pamela Helming

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S912 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments