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SB0261B -1- CSSB 261(HSS)
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CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 261(HSS)
IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
THIRTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE - SECOND SESSION
BY THE SENATE HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES COMMITTEE
Offered: 4/29/26
Referred: Finance
Sponsor(s): SENATOR GRAY-JACKSON
A BILL
FOR AN ACT ENTITLED
"An Act relating to the issuance of certified copies of birth certificates to unhoused 1
young adults; and relating to the issuance of identification cards to unhoused young 2
adults." 3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 4
* Section 1. AS 18.50.320 is amended to read: 5
Sec. 18.50.320. Copies of data from vital records. Except as otherwise 6
provided and in accordance with the regulations adopted under AS 18.50.310, 7
(1) the bureau and the custodian of permanent local records shall, upon 8
request, issue a certified copy of a certificate or record in their custody, or a part of it; 9
each copy issued must show the date of registration or recording, and copies issued 10
from records marked "delayed," "amended," or "court order" shall be similarly marked 11
and must show the effective date; 12
(2) a certified copy of a certificate or a part of it issued in accordance 13
with (1) of this subsection [SECTION] is considered the original for all purposes and 14
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is prima facie evidence of the facts stated; however, the evidentiary value of a 1
certificate or record filed more than one year after the event, or a record that has been 2
amended, or a presumptive death certificate, shall be determined by the judicial or 3
administrative body or official before whom the certificate is offered as evidence; 4
(3) the National Office of Vital Statistics may be furnished the copies 5
or data it requires for national statistics if the bureau is reimbursed for the cost of 6
furnishing the data; the National Office of Vital Statistics may not use the data for 7
purposes other than statistical purposes unless authorized by the state registrar; 8
(4) federal, state, local, and other public or private agencies, upon 9
request, may be furnished copies or data for statistical purposes on the terms or 10
conditions prescribed by the bureau; 11
(5) a person or agency may not prepare or issue a certificate or part of 12
a certificate that purports to be an original, certified copy, or copy of a certificate of 13
birth, death, fetal death, or marriage, except as authorized in this chapter or the 14
regulations adopted under it; 15
(6) upon request, the bureau shall furnish a copy of a certificate or 16
record registered by the bureau to the child support services agency created in 17
AS 25.27.010, or the child support enforcement agency of another state, for child 18
support purposes authorized under law; such a certificate or record that is prepared or 19
maintained in an electronic data base may be supplied by providing the requesting 20
agency with a copy of the electronic certificate or record and a statement certifying its 21
contents; 22
(7) the bureau shall issue up to four certified copies of the death 23
certificate of a veteran without charge; under this paragraph, certified copies of a 24
veteran's death certificate are available without charge only to a qualified person; in 25
this paragraph, 26
(A) "qualified person" means an individual who is 27
(i) a personal representative of the veteran's estate; 28
(ii) a trustee of a revocable trust of which the veteran 29
was the settlor; or 30
(iii) a person who needs a certified copy of the veteran's 31
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death certificate for the purpose of satisfying an eligibility requirement 1
for a benefit related to the death of the veteran; 2
(B) "veteran" means an individual who was 3
(i) on active duty at the time of the veteran's death or 4
had received an honorable or general discharge from a branch of the 5
armed services of the United States, the National Guard, a reserve unit 6
of the United States armed services, the Alaska Scouts, the Alaska 7
Territorial Guard, or the Alaska Naval Militia; and 8
(ii) a resident of the state at the time of the individual's 9
death. 10
* Sec. 2. AS 18.50.320 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 11
(b) If a person meets the requirements for fee waiver under AS 18.50.330(c), 12
the bureau and the custodian of permanent local records shall accept as proof of 13
identity in the person's request for a certified copy of the person's birth certificate 14
(1) an expired or unexpired government-issued photo identification; 15
(2) two of the following documents: 16
(A) an official secondary or postsecondary school record that 17
contains the name, the date of birth, and a description of the person; 18
(B) an education or medical record containing the name and 19
date of birth of the person; 20
(C) an affidavit from another person attesting to the person's 21
identity; 22
(D) other documents containing requisite information to prove 23
identity as determined by the department in regulation; or 24
(3) other proof of identity accepted by the bureau and the custodian of 25
permanent local records for the issuance of a certified copy of a birth certificate. 26
* Sec. 3. AS 18.50.330 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 27
(c) The state registrar may not charge a fee to a person who is unhoused and at 28
least 18 years of age but not yet 26 years of age for the issuance of a certified copy of 29
the person's birth certificate. A person may establish that the person is unhoused under 30
this subsection by providing the state registrar with written verification on a form 31
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prescribed by the department. 1
* Sec. 4. AS 18.65.310(c) is amended to read: 2
(c) Any person who knowingly makes a fraudulent written statement or 3
application for an identification card concerning age, unhoused status, race, sex, or 4
other identifying characteristics as required by the department is guilty of a 5
misdemeanor. 6
* Sec. 5. AS 18.65.310(g) is repealed and reenacted to read: 7
(g) A person applying for an identification card that is not federally compliant 8
under (a) of this section may not be charged for the issuance of the card if the person 9
is 10
(1) 60 years of age or older; or 11
(2) unhoused and at least 18 years of age but not yet 26 years of age. 12
* Sec. 6. AS 18.65.310(r) is amended to read: 13
(r) In this section, 14
(1) "identification card that is federally compliant" means an 15
identification card issued by the state that has been certified by the United States 16
Department of Homeland Security to be in compliance with the requirements of P.L. 17
109-13, Division B (REAL ID Act of 2005); 18
(2) "unhoused" means an individual lacks a fixed, regular, and 19
adequate nighttime residence; in this paragraph, "fixed, regular, and adequate 20
nighttime residence" does not include 21
(A) the residence of another person being shared because of 22
a person's loss of housing, economic hardship, or other similar reason; 23
(B) a motel, hotel, trailer park, or campground a person is 24
residing in because of a lack of other adequate accommodations; 25
(C) an emergency or transitional shelter; 26
(D) a hospital, if a person has been abandoned in the 27
hospital; or 28
(E) a primary nighttime residence that is a public or 29
private place that is not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular 30
sleeping accommodation, such as a car, park, public space, abandoned 31
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SB0261B -5- CSSB 261(HSS)
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building, substandard housing, bus or train station, or similar setting. 1
* Sec. 7. AS 18.65.310 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 2
(s) A person may establish that the person is unhoused under (g)(2) of this 3
section by providing the department with written verification on a form prescribed by 4
the department. 5
(t) When issuing an identification card that is not federally compliant to a 6
person who meets the requirements in (g)(2) of this section, the department 7
(1) may display on the card an address other than a principal residence 8
if the address is where 9
(A) the person is most frequently located and the person 10
provides the department with a list of the locations where the person is 11
frequently located; or 12
(B) an organization that provides services to people who are 13
unhoused is located and the organization provides a written declaration 14
verifying that the person uses those services at that address; 15
(2) shall accept as proof of identity from the person 16
(A) an expired or unexpired government-issued photo 17
identification; 18
(B) two of the following documents: 19
(i) an official secondary or postsecondary school record 20
that contains the name, the date of birth, and a description of the 21
person; 22
(ii) an education or medical record containing the name 23
and date of birth of the person; 24
(iii) an affidavit from another person attesting to the 25
person's identity; 26
(iv) other documents containing requisite information to 27
prove identity as determined by the department in regulation; or 28
(C) other proof of identity accepted by the department for an 29
identification card that is not federally compliant. 30