(a) (1) The State Registrar shall arrange and permanently preserve the certificates in a systematic manner and shall prepare and maintain comprehensive and continuous indices of all certificates registered.

(2) The birth, death, and marriage record indices prepared pursuant to paragraph (1) and all comprehensive birth, death, and marriage record indices prepared or maintained by local registrars and county recorders shall be kept confidential and shall be exempt from disclosure under the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code).

Ask a legal question, get an answer ASAP!
Click here to chat with a lawyer about your rights.

(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the State Registrar, at the registrar’s discretion, may release comprehensive birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices to a government agency. The comprehensive birth record indices released to the county recorder shall be subject to the same restrictions applicable to the confidential portion of a certificate of live birth, as specified in Section 102430. Local registrars and county recorders, when requested, shall release their comprehensive birth, death, and marriage record indices to the State Registrar. Local registrars may release their comprehensive birth and death record indices to the county recorder within its jurisdiction for purposes of the preparation or maintenance of the indices of the county recorder. A government agency that obtains indices pursuant to this paragraph shall not sell or release the index or a portion of its contents to another person, except as necessary for official government business, and shall not post the indices or any portion of the indices on the internet.

(b) (1) The State Registrar shall prepare and maintain separate noncomprehensive indices of all California birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage records for public release.

(2) For purposes of this section, noncomprehensive birth record indices for public release shall be comprised of first, middle, and last name, sex, date of birth, and place of birth.

(3) For purposes of this section, noncomprehensive death record indices for public release shall be comprised of first, middle, and last name, sex, date of birth, place of birth, place of death, date of death, and father’s last name.

(4) For purposes of this section, noncomprehensive nonconfidential marriage record indices for public release shall be comprised of the name of each party to the marriage and the date of marriage.

(5) Requesters of the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices prepared pursuant to this subdivision shall provide proof of identity, complete a form, and sign the form under penalty of perjury. The form shall include all of the following:

(A) The proposed use of the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices.

(B) A disclaimer crediting analyses, interpretations, or conclusions reached regarding the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices to the author and not to the State Department of Public Health.

(C) Assurance that technical descriptions of the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices are consistent with those provided by the State Department of Public Health.

(D) Assurance that the requester shall not sell, assign, or otherwise transfer the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices.

(E) Assurance that the requester shall not use the birth or death record indices for fraudulent purposes.

(6) Birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices obtained pursuant to this subdivision, and any portion thereof, shall not be used for fraudulent purposes.

(c) (1) The State Registrar shall prepare and maintain separate noncomprehensive indices of all California birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage records for purposes of law enforcement or preventing fraud.

(2) For purposes of this section, noncomprehensive birth record indices for the purpose of preventing fraud shall be comprised of first, middle, and last name, sex, date of birth, place of birth, and mother’s maiden name.

(3) For purposes of this section, noncomprehensive death record indices for the purpose of preventing fraud shall be comprised of first, middle, and last name, place of death, mother’s maiden name, sex, social security number, date of birth, place of birth, date of death, and father’s last name.

(4) For purposes of this section, noncomprehensive nonconfidential marriage record indices for the purpose of preventing fraud shall be comprised of the name of each party to the marriage and the date of marriage.

(5) The birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices prepared pursuant to this subdivision shall be made available to financial institutions, as defined in Section 6827(4)(A) and (B) of Title 15 of the United States Code, its representatives or contractors, consumer credit reporting agencies, as defined in subdivision (d) of § 1785.3 of the Civil Code, its representatives or contractors, those entities providing information services for purposes of law enforcement or preventing fraud, officers of the court for the sole purpose of verifying a death, and to persons or entities acting on behalf of law enforcement agencies or the court, or pursuant to a court order.

(6) The birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices prepared pursuant to this subdivision may be released to a government agency.

(7) Requesters of the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices prepared pursuant to this subdivision shall provide proof of identity, complete a form, and sign the form under penalty of perjury. The form shall include all of the following:

(A) An agreement not to release or allow public access to the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices, and an agreement not to post the indices on the internet, except as permitted by this subdivision.

(B) The proposed use of the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices.

(C) The names of all persons within the organization, if applicable, who will have access to the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices.

(D)  A disclaimer crediting analyses, interpretations, or conclusions reached regarding the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices to the author and not to the State Department of Public Health.

(E) Assurance that technical descriptions of the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices are consistent with those provided by the State Department of Public Health.

(F) Assurance that the requester shall not sell, assign, or otherwise transfer the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices, except as permitted by this subdivision.

(G) Assurance that the requester shall not use the birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record indices for fraudulent purposes.

(8) (A) Birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices, and any portion thereof, obtained pursuant to this section, shall not be used for fraudulent purposes and shall not be posted on the internet.

(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), individual information contained in birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices may be posted on the internet if all of the following requirements are met:

(i) The individual information is posted on an internet website that is protected by a password.

(ii) The individual information is posted on an internet website that is available to subscribers only for a fee.

(iii) The individual information is not posted for public display.

(iv) The individual information is available to subscribers pursuant to a contractual agreement.

(v) The individual information is posted for purposes of law enforcement or preventing fraud.

(d) Mail-in requests from nongovernmental agencies for birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices requested pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (c) shall include a notarized statement attesting to the identity of the requester.

(e) Noncomprehensive birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (c) shall be updated annually.

(f) Birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices provided pursuant to this section shall be made available subject to cost recovery provisions of the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code).

(g) Noncomprehensive birth, death, and nonconfidential marriage record indices created by local registrars or county recorders shall be subject to the conditions for release required by this section.

(h) A person or entity that obtains a birth, death, or nonconfidential marriage record index, or any portion thereof, from a requester who has obtained the index in accordance with paragraph (7) of subdivision (c) shall not sell, assign, or otherwise transfer that index, or any portion thereof, to a third party.

(i) Paragraphs (2) and (3) of subdivision (a) and subdivisions (b) to (h), inclusive, shall be implemented only to the extent that funds for these purposes are appropriated by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or other statute.

(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 615, Sec. 273. (AB 474) Effective January 1, 2022. Operative January 1, 2023, pursuant to Sec. 463 of Stats. 2021, Ch. 615.)