S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8214
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                                May 5, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. SAYEGH -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law and the domestic relations law, in
   relation  to  providing  for a window of eighteen months for people to
   receive certain vital records without paying a fee; and providing  for
   the repeal of such provisions upon expiration thereof

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited  as  the  "Protect
 Our Vote Act" or the "POV Act".
   §  2.  Subdivision  3  of  section  4173  of the public health law, as
 amended by chapter 288 of the laws  of  2020,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   3. [(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b) of this subdivi-
 sion,  the  registrar shall be entitled to a fee of ten dollars for each
 certification of birth or death or for each certified copy or  certified
 transcript of any record of a birth or of a death or for a certification
 that a search discloses no record of a birth or of a death, furnished by
 him  to  an applicant, except that no fee shall be charged for a search,
 certification of birth or death or certified  copy  or  certified  tran-
 script  of  a  birth  or  a death record to be used for school entrance,
 employment certificate or for purposes of public  relief  or  government
 compensation  or when required by the veterans administration to be used
 in determining the eligibility of any person to participate in the bene-
 fits made available by the veterans administration,  provided,  however,
 that  if such registrar is a city clerk, town clerk or village clerk, he
 shall collect such fees for and on behalf of the city, town  or  village
 in  which he serves, provided, however, that an amount equivalent to the
 sum of such fees shall be paid at least monthly by such  city,  town  or
 village  to  such  city  clerk,  town clerk or village clerk entitled to
 receive fees as a registrar of vital statistics.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11790-01-5
              

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   (b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this subdivision, in the  follow-
 ing  county  jurisdictions  the  fee  shall  be set by the county health
 commissioner: Chemung, Monroe, Onondaga, Tompkins; and in the  following
 local  jurisdictions the fee shall be set by the local legislative body:
 city  of  Oswego,  city  of Albany, city of Jamestown. In such jurisdic-
 tions, the fee may be set up to the amount charged by  the  commissioner
 as  prescribed  in subdivision two of section forty-one hundred seventy-
 four of this title.] THE REGISTRAR SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO ANY FEE  FOR
 ANY  CERTIFICATION OF BIRTH OR DEATH OR FOR ANY CERTIFIED COPY OR CERTI-
 FIED TRANSCRIPT OF ANY RECORD OF A BIRTH  OR  OF  A  DEATH  OR  FOR  ANY
 CERTIFICATION  THAT  A  SEARCH  DISCLOSES  NO  RECORD OF A BIRTH OR OF A
 DEATH, FURNISHED BY THE REGISTRAR TO AN APPLICANT.
   § 3. Subdivision 2 of section  4174  of  the  public  health  law,  as
 amended  by  section  2 of part W2 of chapter 62 of the laws of 2003, is
 amended to read as follows:
   2. Each applicant for a certification of birth or  death,  certificate
 of birth data or for a certified copy or certified transcript of a birth
 or  death certificate or certificate of birth data shall NOT BE REQUIRED
 TO remit to the commissioner with such application [a] ANY fee [of thir-
 ty dollars in payment for the search of the files and  records  and  the
 furnishing of a certification, certified copy or certified transcript if
 such  record  is found or for a certification that a search discloses no
 record of a birth or of a death].
   § 4. Subdivisions 6 and 7 of section 4139 of the public health law, as
 amended by section 1 of part W2 of chapter 62 of the laws of  2003,  are
 amended to read as follows:
   6.  The  commissioner  shall NOT be entitled to [a] ANY fee [of thirty
 dollars] for each certification, certified copy or certified  transcript
 of certificate of dissolution of marriage furnished.
   7.  For  a  search of the files where no such certification, certified
 copy, or certified transcript is furnished, or for a certification  that
 a  search  discloses no record of a dissolution of marriage, the commis-
 sioner shall NOT be entitled to [a] ANY fee [of thirty dollars].
   § 5. Section 20-a of the domestic relations law, as amended by section
 6 of part W2 of chapter 62 of the laws of 2003, is amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   § 20-a. Certified transcripts of records; state commissioner of health
 may  furnish.  The  state commissioner of health or person authorized by
 [him] THEM shall, upon request, supply  to  any  applicant  a  certified
 transcript of any marriage registered under the provisions of this arti-
 cle,  unless [he is] THEY ARE satisfied that the same does not appear to
 be necessary or required for judicial  or  other  proper  purposes.  Any
 transcript  of  the record of a marriage, when properly certified by the
 state commissioner of health or person authorized to act for [him] THEM,
 shall be prima facie evidence in all courts  and  places  of  the  facts
 therein  stated.  For  any search of the files and records conducted for
 authorized research purposes, the state commissioner of health shall NOT
 be entitled to [a] ANY fee [of twenty dollars for  each  hour  or  frac-
 tional  part  of  an  hour of time of search, together with a fee of two
 dollars] for TIME SPENT  SEARCHING  OR  FOR  each  uncertified  copy  or
 abstract  of such marriage record requested by the applicant[, said fees
 to be paid by the applicant]. [Each] NO applicant for a certified  tran-
 script  of  a  marriage  record shall remit to the state commissioner of
 health [a] ANY fee [of thirty dollars in payment] for the search of  the
 files  and records and the furnishing of a certified copy if such record
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 is found or for a certification that a search discloses no record  of  a
 marriage.
   §  6.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law and shall  expire  and  be  deemed  repealed  eighteen
 months after such effective date.