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An Act Regarding Changing the Designation of a Parent on the Birth Certificate of an Adult
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §2705, sub-§6, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 585, §1, is amended to read:
 
6. Amendment of birth certificate of adult.   Amendment of a birth certificate of birth of a person 18 years of age or older born in this State for the purpose of identifying a biological parent who was not known or listed at the time of birth is governed by section 27672767-A.
Sec. 2. 22 MRSA §2767, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 585, §2, is repealed.
Sec. 3.  22 MRSA §2767-A  is enacted to read:
§ 2767-A. Amendment of birth certificate of adult
 
1.  Amendment of birth certificate.     The State Registrar of Vital Statistics shall amend the birth certificate of a person 18 years of age or older born in this State for the purpose of identifying a genetic parent who was not known or listed at the time of birth when the state registrar has received the following:
 
A.  A signed, notarized request from the subject of the birth certificate that the birth certificate be amended;
 
B.  Either the written, notarized consent of the genetic parent to be named on the amended birth certificate or a certified copy of the death certificate of the genetic parent to be named on the amended birth certificate; and
 
C.  Evidence of genetic parentage based on testing of deoxyribonucleic acid, DNA, that includes:
 
(1) A notarized report of the results of the DNA testing; and
 
(2) Notarized documentation of the chain of custody of the blood and tissue samples examined in the testing.
 
The testing must be of a type generally acknowledged as reliable by accreditation bodies designated by the federal Secretary of Health and Human Services, and it must be performed by a laboratory approved by an accreditation body designated by the federal Secretary of Health and Human Services.
 
2.  Effect.     If the request submitted pursuant to subsection 1 does not contain the written, notarized consent of the genetic parent to be named on the amended birth certificate, amendment of the birth certificate pursuant to this section does not affect the rights of inheritance and descent. A birth certificate amended without the written, notarized consent of the genetic parent to be named on the amended birth certificate must contain the following words in a conspicuous place: "This birth certificate has been amended to identify a genetic parent not known or listed at the time of birth. This amendment does not affect the rights of inheritance or descent of the subject of the birth certificate."
 
SUMMARY
This bill repeals the current law governing amendment of the birth certificate of an adult and creates a process for amending an adult's birth certificate when genetic testing identifies a parent who was not known or listed at the time of the adult's birth and the genetic parent to be named on the amended birth certificate either consents in writing to the amendment or is deceased. The bill provides that amendment of a birth certificate without the consent of the genetic parent to be named on the amended birth certificate does not affect the rights of inheritance or descent.