California Considers Restrictive Marriage Records Access

The following announcement was written by Liz Stookesberry Myers of the California Alliance of Genealogical Societies:

Assembly Bill 130 will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee very soon.  It was introduced by  Kevin Jeffries (Republican ) of the Temecula area.  The Bill was presented at the request of the Recorder Association of California.  They want to be able to handle Marriage Records the same as Birth and Death Records.  That means that they can black out the Mother's Maiden name, if the County Recorder chooses.  The Recorder also has the option of sending out an informational copy only.

The main concern is what the Recorder of each county may or may not choose to do.  At least that is the way it is written today.

As we know, the unfounded fear of ID theft is a worry to Legislatures on the State and National Levels.  Yet, research shows that ID Theft is caused by Data Hackers or stolen items from a friend or acquaintance!

I urge you to notify the Senate Appropriation's Committee and your State Representatives of our feelings about access to these public records. Remind them that these records help us to find family and determine if an inherited disease is running through the family lines.  That seems to get their attention.

Go to www.senate.ca.gov and click on Committees go to: Standing Committee to Appropriations.  There you will see the members of the committee and staff information.  Call or write these committee members and let them know who important changing this rule is to genealogists world wide!

Go to www.legislature.ca.gov to find your local representative.  When this bill goes to the Senate and Assembly Floor, we will need to jump in and let them know how important access to these records is to us!

We have been advised by Jan Meisels Allen, of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies and Chairperson, of Public Records Access and Monitoring Committee to "write to the governor as it can be  heard as soon as today and the way this bill is moving it won't take long for it to pass both houses on the floor." Urge the governor to veto the bill..."  gov.ca.gov/interact

Please take a moment to make a call, or write a letter or Fax your thoughts.  It will only happen if we take the time to do it now!

Liz Stookesberry Myers
California Alliance of Genealogical Societies
Legislative Committee
562/598-3027

Comments

[Larry Parker]

It took me about 15 minutes online to try to find who my California State Senator is, and I am still not sure since I live very close to a district border, and the maps I found were so poor. My Zip Code is split into different districts, so that didn't help.

I emailed State Senator Mimi Walters the following:

I write to ask for a no vote on AB 130. That bill is an overreaction to the problem of identity theft. Old vital records are not a source of information used for identity theft. I am an amateur genealogist. Other genealogists also need access to unredacted old vital records.

[Dae Powell]

Larry is correct: old vital records are not used for identity theft. Credit records and social security numbers are. So, if anything is going to be restricted, it would be the Social Security Death Indices. Slim chance there, too.

NO for AB 130.

Happy Dae·
http://ShoeStringGenealogy.com

[Dick Eastman]

The Social Security Death Indices are one of the major tools to PREVENT identity theft.

That databse is a list produced each month and made available at low cost to banks, credit card companies, insurance companies, drivers' license bureaus, and more. It is a list of Social Security numbers that are no longer valid and serves as a notice to all the agencies to not honor these Social Security numbers any more.

All the smart banks, credit card companies, insurance companies, drivers' license bureaus, and others obtain the list each month and IMMEDIATELY enter those entries into their databases as invalid numbers. The process is simple. Sadly, not all of those agencies are smart.

If all the agencies would use the Social Security Death Indexes properly, identity theft would drop greatly.

- Dick Eastman

[Dae Powell]

Exactly, Mr. Eastman. As security increases along with open communications between agencies, cybercrimes will be reduced.

Happy Dae·

[Jan Meisels Allen]

I have learned that one part of the information posted regarding CA AB 130 is incorrect. The bill does not redact mothers' maiden name from informational copies of marriage records. As originally, correctly, stated, the bill, does not include mothers' maiden names in the data files (i.e.non-comprehensive indices) making it difficult to determine (for example) if the John Black married Mary Smith in the index is the marriage you are searching. The IAJGS website [www.iajgs.org] Latest_Alert (under the legislation tab) has been updated to reflect this correction.

Jan Meisels Allen
Director, IAJGS and
Chairperson, Public Records Access Monitoring Committee

[Pallas Houser]

I am very upset about the possibilities of the California possibly are going to be very restrictive, people want to know who their ancestors were and medical problems the families faced so we can give our Drs some idea what is in the family and what we should be on the lookout for and be able to at least possibly locate some of our long lost cousins and family and if they start restricting records to researchers and historians this will be a tragic event, I beg and plead for everyone involved to please keep these records available to the public for everyones sake, this would sure help a lot of people also the persons that are adopted might be able to find out the medical past also. People are going to really be messed up worse if they discontinue to allow us access to our ancestors.

[Perrin Larton]

My comment has always been...prosecute the people who steal identities and leave the genealogical community alone. As stated in another excellent post...there are few if any identity thefts from crooks using genealogical data. Crooks don't want to do the work...it's simpler to steal. I'll be contacting my legislators to ask them to vote NO on CA AB 130 and ask them to consider issuing an up to date index of Deaths and Marriages for a fee as a revenue source for California! I'd sign up!