| HOME | SEARCH | ABOUT US | CONTACT US | HELP | ||
 |
 |
|
|
| Montana Administrative Register Notice 37-741 | No. 5 03/04/2016 | |
|
||
| Prev | Next | ||
|
BEFORE THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES OF THE STATE OF MONTANA
TO: All Concerned Persons
1. On March 24, 2016, at 2:30 p.m., the Department of Public Health and Human Services will hold a public hearing in the auditorium of the Department of Public Health and Human Services Building, 111 North Sanders, Helena, Montana, to consider the proposed amendment of the above-stated rule.
2. The Department of Public Health and Human Services will make reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities who wish to participate in this rulemaking process or need an alternative accessible format of this notice. If you require an accommodation, contact the Department of Public Health and Human Services no later than 5:00 p.m. on March 17, 2016, to advise us of the nature of the accommodation that you need. Please contact Kenneth Mordan, Department of Public Health and Human Services, Office of Legal Affairs, P.O. Box 4210, Helena, Montana, 59604-4210; telephone (406) 444-4094; fax (406) 444-9744; or e-mail [email protected].
3. The rule as proposed to be amended provides as follows, new matter underlined, deleted matter interlined:
37.8.116 FEES FOR CERTIFICATION, FILE SEARCHES, AND OTHER VITAL RECORDS SERVICES (1) The fee for a certified copy (photocopy or computer-produced) of a birth certificate, (2) The fee for a certified copy (photocopy or computer-produced) of a death certificate is $15 for the first copy of a specific request and $8 for each additional copy of the same record request, at the same time, as the first copy. $3.00 from each copy purchased from the department will be deposited into a special revenue account held by the Department of Labor and Industry for the general administration of the Board of Funeral Service. (3) The fee for an informational copy of a death certificate is $13.00. $3.00 from each copy purchased from the department will be deposited into a special revenue account held by the Department of Labor and Industry for the general administration of the Board of Funeral Service. (3) remains the same, but is renumbered (5). (5) and (6) remain the same, but are renumbered (7) and (8). (8) through (10) remain the same, but are renumbered (10) through (12). (12) remains the same, but is renumbered (14).
AUTH: 50-15-102, 50-15-103, 50-15-111, MCA
4. STATEMENT OF REASONABLE NECESSITY
The Department of Public Health and Human Services (department) is proposing an amendment to ARM 37.8.116 regarding increasing the fee for a certified copy of a death certificate. The following describes the purpose of the proposed rule amendments and necessity pertaining to proposed amendments to the rule.
ARM 37.8.116
This rule sets out fees for: obtaining copies of vital records certificates; processing changes and amendments to records, e.g., adoptions, corrections; file searches; and obtaining customized analyses or research data sets based on vital records. The proposed amendments to ARM 37.8.116(2) and (3) are the result of the passage of HB 223 during the 2015 Legislative Session. This bill statutorily requires the department to charge $15 for the initial certified copy of a death certificate, and $8 for subsequent certified copies. It also mandates that the department charge $13 for each informational copy of a death certificate. The reason for these changes is that the bill also directs the department to transfer $3 of each of those fees to the Department of Labor and Industry to provide revenue for the general operating expenses of the Board of Funeral Service, which had previously become insolvent.
The proposed amendments to ARM 37.8.116(6) and (9) increase fees for certificates of adoption and rescission of adoption, as well as for amendments or corrections to vital records. The fees for these services have not been revised or increased since 2002. Some of the activities involve substantial amounts of staff time, and the fees currently in effect do not cover the actual cost of these activities. Accordingly, taxpayers are presently subsidizing the cost of providing these services to the direct users of the services. The proposed fee increases will shift a greater proportion of the actual cost of the services to the individuals who directly use them.
The current fees of $25 for adoption and $15 for corrections include issuance of a certified copy of the adoption certificate or corrected certificate. The proposed rule changes retain the $25 and $15 respective processing fees, but now provide for a fee of $12 for certified copies of vital records reflecting those services. This proposed change will better reflect the cost of providing the services, and reduce the subsidy these activities receive from other OVS revenue.
Fiscal Impact
ARM 37.8.116(2) and (3)
ARM 37.8.116(6)
The Office of Vital Statistics (OVS) processes approximately 900 adoptions per year. 900 x $12.00 = $10,800 additional revenue
ARM 37.8.116(9)
The OVS processes approximately 1,250 corrections per year. 1,250 x $12 = $15,000 additional revenue
Most citizens never have occasion to request adoption certificates or corrections to birth or death certificates. Those who need these services typically need only one transaction. The increased costs are modest for the small number of individuals affected.
Total estimated additional annual revenue for OVS: $35,700
Estimated number of persons affected: 2,150
5. Concerned persons may submit their data, views, or arguments either orally or in writing at the hearing. Written data, views, or arguments may also be submitted to: Kenneth Mordan, Department of Public Health and Human Services, Office of Legal Affairs, P.O. Box 4210, Helena, Montana, 59604-4210; fax (406) 444-9744; or e-mail [email protected], and must be received no later than 5:00 p.m., April 1, 2016.
6. The Office of Legal Affairs, Department of Public Health and Human Services, has been designated to preside over and conduct this hearing.
7. The department maintains a list of interested persons who wish to receive notices of rulemaking actions proposed by this agency. Persons who wish to have their name added to the list shall make a written request that includes the name, e-mail, and mailing address of the person to receive notices and specifies for which program the person wishes to receive notices. Notices will be sent by e-mail unless a mailing preference is noted in the request. Such written request may be mailed or delivered to the contact person in 5 above or may be made by completing a request form at any rules hearing held by the department.
8. An electronic copy of this proposal notice is available through the Secretary of State's web site at http://sos.mt.gov/ARM/Register. The Secretary of State strives to make the electronic copy of the notice conform to the official version of the notice, as printed in the Montana Administrative Register, but advises all concerned persons that in the event of a discrepancy between the official printed text of the notice and the electronic version of the notice, only the official printed text will be considered. In addition, although the Secretary of State works to keep its web site accessible at all times, concerned persons should be aware that the web site may be unavailable during some periods, due to system maintenance or technical problems.
9. The bill sponsor contact requirements of 2-4-302, MCA, apply and have been fulfilled. The primary bill sponsor was notified by electronic mail on February 17, 2016.
10. With regard to the requirements of 2-4-111, MCA, the department has determined that the amendment of the above-referenced rule will not significantly and directly impact small businesses.
11. Section 53-6-196, MCA, requires that the department, when adopting by rule proposed changes in the delivery of services funded with Medicaid monies, make a determination of whether the principal reasons and rationale for the rule can be assessed by performance-based measures and, if the requirement is applicable, the method of such measurement. The statute provides that the requirement is not applicable if the rule is for the implementation of rate increases or of federal law.
The department has determined that the proposed program changes presented in this notice are not appropriate for performance-based measurement and therefore are not subject to the performance-based measures requirement of 53-6-196, MCA.
/s/ Nick Domitrovich /s/ Richard H. Opper Nick Domitrovich, Attorney Richard H. Opper, Director Rule Reviewer Public Health and Human Services
Certified to the Secretary of State February 22, 2016.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A directory of state agencies is available online at http://www.mt.gov/govt/agencylisting.asp.
For questions about the organization of the ARM or this web site, contact [email protected].
