Pennsylvania Act 2001-82 — VITAL STATISTICS LAW OF 1953 - AMEND FILINGS WITH DEPARTMENT FOR MARRIAGES, DIVORCES, ANNULMENTS, ADOPTIONS AND DECREES OF ANNULMENT RELATING TO ADOPTIONS

Act text

Session of 2001

No. 2001-82

SB 773

AN ACT

Amending the act of June 29, 1953 (P.L.304, No.66), entitled "An act providing for the administration of a statewide system of vital statistics; prescribing the functions of the State Department of Health, the State Advisory Health Board and local registrars; imposing duties upon coroners, prothonotaries, clerks of orphans' court, physicians, midwives and other persons; requiring reports and certificates for the registration of vital statistics; regulating the disposition of dead bodies; limiting the disclosure of records; prescribing the sufficiency of vital statistics records as evidence; prescribing fees and penalties; and revising and consolidating the laws relating thereto," further providing for filings with the department related to marriages, divorces, annulments, adoptions and decrees of annulment relating to adoptions.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Sections 601 and 602 of the act of June 29, 1953 (P.L.304, No.66), known as the Vital Statistics Law of 1953, are amended to read:

Section 601. Change of Civil Status: Marriage Registration.--The clerk of orphans' court of every county shall execute [transcripts] a statistical summary of the marriage license applications for marriages solemnized within this Commonwealth. The department shall prescribe the forms of such [transcripts] summary and the forms of marriage license applications. On or before the fifteenth day of each calendar month, each clerk of orphans' court shall transmit to the department the [transcripts] summary of all marriage license applications pertaining to the executed marriage license certificates filed with [him] the clerk during the immediately preceding calendar month. The applicants for each marriage license shall, in addition to the fee for the license, pay to the clerk of orphans' court a fee of fifty cents ($.50) for the execution and transmission of the [transcript] summary required by this section. The department, at its discretion, may prescribe the method by which the transmission of the statistical summaries to the department is to occur under this section, including, but not limited to, transmission by paper copy by mail or other courier, facsimile transmission or electronic means.

Section 602. Change of Civil Status: Court Reports.--A [certificate of each divorce, annulment of marriage,] monthly statistical summary of divorces and annulments of marriage and a certificate of each adoption and annulment of adoption decreed or ordered in this Commonwealth shall be transmitted to the department. The prothonotary or the clerk of the orphans' court shall execute each such statistical summary and certificate on a form prescribed by the department. On or before the fifteenth day of each calendar month, the prothonotary or clerk shall transmit to the department such summaries pertaining to divorces and annulments of marriage together with the certificates pertaining to [divorces, annulments of marriage,] adoptions or annulments of adoption decreed or ordered during the preceding calendar month. [For each such certificate the] The prothonotary or clerk shall assess a fee of fifty cents ($.50) as part of the costs of the proceedings had in connection [therewith,] with each divorce, annulment of marriage, adoption or annulment of adoption and shall receive and apply such fee in the same manner and for the same uses as other costs received by [him.] the prothonotary or clerk. The department, at its discretion, may prescribe the method by which the transmission of the statistical summaries and the certificates to the department is to occur under this section, including, but not limited to, transmission by paper copy by mail or other courier, facsimile transmission or electronic means.

Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.

APPROVED--The 30th day of October, A. D. 2001.

MARK S. SCHWEIKER