Prohibits charging a fee to obtain a certified copy or certified transcript of birth in certain situations

• Democratic3

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Luis R. Sepúlveda says this is needed

Individuals often need state-issued identification to access social services, secure housing, and apply for employment, which are all key factors that contribute to the individual successfully reintegrating into the community after serving an incarceratory sentence. Many people returning from incarceration, however, do not have state-issued iden- tification, and obtaining such identification frequently requires providing a copy of a birth certificate, access to which can be costly. In 2010, legislation was enacted to provide birth certificates from the state health department and the NYC bureau of vital statistics at no charge to state and local correctional facilities as well as to NYC DOC when requested for the purpose of providing such certificate to an inmate in anticipation of such inmate's release from custody. This bill modifies existing law to expand those provisions to include requests made on behalf of individuals under community supervision, to promote successful reentry of those individuals.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.