LC 33 0515
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Chapter 10 of Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to vital records, so as to enact the
"Babýs
Right To Know Act"; to request that an unmarried mother identify the name of a
babýs
father; to provide for county health departments to attempt to locate putative
fathers; to provide for amended birth certificates; to require the
identification on birth certificates of certain children born as a result of
artificial insemination; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting
laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
This
Act shall be known and may be cited as the
"Babýs
Right To Know Act."
SECTION
2.
Chapter
10 of Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to vital
records, is amended by striking subsections (e) and (f) of Code Section 31-10-9,
relating to registration of births, and inserting in their respective places the
following:
"(e)
The name of the natural father or putative father shall be entered on the
certificate of live birth as follows:
(1)
If the mother was married either at the time of conception or at the time of
birth, the name of the husband shall be entered on the certificate as the father
of the child unless paternity has been determined otherwise by a court having
jurisdiction, in which case the name of the father as determined by the court
shall be entered;
(2)(A)
If the mother is not married at either the time of conception or at the time of
birth, the
name of the putative father shall not be entered on the certificate of birth
without the written consent of the mother and the person to be named as
father
the
institution or other party, as applicable, shall request that the mother
identify the name of the
child́s
father, which name shall be entered on the certificate of birth, if given, and
identified as unconfirmed. If the mother indicates that the
fatheŕs
name is unknown the birth certificate shall so indicate. The name of the
putative father and his address, if available, shall be recorded on a
notification form which together with the birth certificate shall be filed in
accordance with subsection (a) of this Code section.
(B)
Upon receipt of a birth certificate and notification form, the local registrar
shall forward the notification form to the county health department which shall
attempt to locate the putative father. The county health department may seek the
assistance of the county sheriff or local police department in its attempt to
locate the putative father.
(C)
If the county health department is able to contact the putative father, he shall
be notified of his rights and responsibilities regarding the identified child.
The putative father may either admit or deny paternity. If paternity is denied,
the putative father shall be asked to submit to a DNA blood test to establish
paternity. The cost of the paternity test shall be borne by the putative father
if the test establishes paternity or, if the test fails to establish paternity,
by the mother or the state, if the mother is indigent.
(D)
The county health department shall notify the local registrar of the results of
the paternity test. Upon receipt of a positive paternity test result the
registrar shall remove the unconfirmed notation on the birth certificate. Upon
receipt of a negative paternity test result the registrar shall remove the name
of the putative father and replace it with the word 'unknown.'
(E)
The county health department shall inform the mother of the result of each
paternity test. Upon positive identification of the father an amended birth
certificate shall be provided to the mother by the
registrar;
(3)
In any case in which paternity of a child is determined by a court of competent
jurisdiction, the name of the father and the surname of the child shall be
entered on the certificate of birth in accordance with the finding and order of
the court;
(4)
If the father is not named on the certificate of birth, no other information
about the father shall be entered on the certificate; or
(5)
Except as provided in paragraph (3) of this subsection, in all other cases, the
surname of the child shall be the legal surname of the mother at the time of the
birth entered on the certificate as designated by the mother. When a paternity
acknowledgment is completed, the surname of the child shall be entered as
designated by both parents.
(f)
The birth certificate of a child born to a married woman as a result of
artificial insemination, with consent of her husband, shall be completed in
accordance with the provisions of subsection (e) of this Code section.
The birth
certificate of a child born to an unmarried woman as a result of artificial
insemination shall have placed on the birth certificate in the space where the
fatheŕs
name would be entered the words 'artificial
insemination.'"
SECTION
3.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.