Transcript Slide 1

Right to be forgotten
Sorry, due to budget cuts,
we are only open to the public on the
third Wednesday of every other
month.
“NYC is a
closed
jurisdiction
and we are
not public
records.”
Only the dead can get copies of their death records
Access
Denied!
You have to prove your kinship before
you can obtain your great
grandfather’s records
So, what can we DO
about this?
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The Times They Are A-Changing!
T 219
28 August 2014
San Antonio, Texas
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Agenda
• Jan Alpert, Chair, RPAC
• About RPAC
• Three-year restriction to Social Security Death Index
• RPAC requesting Amendment to Sec. 203
• Jan Meisels Allen, Chair, IAJGS Public Records Access Monitoring Com.
• 2011 Revision Model Vital Statistics Act
• 2014 Examples of State Vital Records Legislation
• European Union Update
• Fred Moss, Counsel for FGS
• Genealogists’ Declaration of Rights
• Know Your Legislators: Talking Points & Sample Letter
• Congressional Recess: Make Your Voice Heard
• Q&A
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About RPAC
• Joint Committee of FGS, NGS, and IAJGS
• Participating organizations: APG, ASG, BCG,
and ICAPGen.
• Other participants: Ancestry & ProQuest
• State Liaisons (30 of the 50 states currently
represented)
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Records Preservation & Access Committee
Participants
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Jan Alpert, Chair (SC)
Josh Taylor, FGS (MA)
Fred Moss, FGS (TX)
David Rencher, FGS (UT)
Curt Witcher, FGS (IN)
Linda McCleary, FGS (AZ)
Barbara Mathews, BCG (MA)
Roger D. Joslyn, ASG (NY)
Linda Gulbrandsen, ICAPGEN
(UT)
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Jan Meisels Allen, IAJGS (CA)
Ken Ryesky, IAJGS (NY)
Jordan Jones, NGS, (NC)
Donn Devine, NGS (DE)
Darrell Jackson, NGS (MI)
Kelvin Meyers, APG (TX)
Lou Szucs, Ancestry (IL)
Bill Forsyth, ProQuest (UT)
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RPAC Mission
• Advocate open access to vital records
• Support strong preservation policies & practices
• Advise community about federal, state, and
sometimes local regulations and legislation
• Coordinate genealogical community response
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How RPAC Works
• Monthly evening conference call—First Thursday
each month
• Presentations in 2014 at FGS, IAJGS & NGS
• RPAC Blog at http://www.FGS.org/rpac
• RPAC email list
• State Liaisons conference calls and mailing list
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RPAC Blog
http://www.fgs.org/rpac/
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RPAC Blog
http://www.fgs.org/rpac/publications
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Pick Up the RPAC Brochure
at the RPAC Booth # 604
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How We Hear About Threats
• Members of RPAC committee
• Participating organizations in RPAC
• State Liaisons
• Genealogy Blogs
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How RPAC Responds to Threats
• RPAC supports and assists local genealogy
groups and state liaisons
• Monitors bills as the legislation progresses
• Communicates threats and bill status
• Prepares written statements for key
committee hearings
• Posts sample letters to legislators
• Talking Points for visits with your legislators
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State Liaisons—How Selected
• Normally by state umbrella society
• Looking for volunteers interested in the political
process
• Who possibly worked in government affairs,
state, or local government
• If interested see me after this presentation
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State Liaison Roster
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Elizabeth Wells (AL)
Connie Bradbury (AK)
Linda McCleary (AZ)
Jan Davenport (AR)
David Coward (CO)
Robert Rafford (CT)
Donn Devine (DE)
Frank Laurent (FL)
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Elizabeth Olson (GA)
Jeanie Lowe (IL)
Curt Witcher (IN)
Cynthia Hofmeister (LA)
Barbara Mathews (MA)
Helen Shaw (ME)
Cynthia Grostick (MI)
Nancy Waller Thomas (MO)
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State Liaison Roster
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Bernice Schroer (NV)
Joan Lowry (NJ)
Derek Davey (OH)
Billie Fogarty (OK)
Leslie Lawson (OR)
James Beidler (PA)
John Andrews, Jr. (SC)
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Carla Maitland (TN)
Teri Flack (TX)
Linda Gulbrandsen (UT)
John Leppman (VT)
Barbara Vines Little (VA)
Eric Stroschein (WA)
Pam Anderson (WI)
State Liaisons in the room please stand
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Liaisons Needed
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California
Hawaii
Idaho
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Maryland
Minnesota
Mississippi
Montana
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Nebraska
New Hampshire
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Rhode Island
South Dakota
West Virginia
Wyoming
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National Coalition for History
• RPAC has recently joined NCH for 2015
• http://www.historycoalition.org
• Includes more than 55 historical and archival
organizations and societies
• We share similar interests in open access to
records
• Provides some visibility in Washington, DC
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Current Threats to Vital Records Access
• Closure of the SSDI record for three years from
person’s death.
• Since November 2011, the Social Security
Administration is providing less data
• Model State Vital Statistics Act will increase the
embargo periods on access to Vital Records
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2013 Bipartisan Budget Act
• Passed both houses in December
• Signed by the President 26 December 2013
• Death Master File/SSDI record closed for 3 years
after death
• Must be certified by the Department of
Commerce to access the DMF/SSDI during the 3
year embargo period
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2013 Bipartisan Budget Act
• Hearing on 4 March 2014.
• Fred Moss, counsel for FGS testified
• 111 participated in person or via webcast
• Statements to Commerce on Interim Rule were
sent in April 2014 by RPAC and others
• We have allies: Statements also filed by
insurance companies, industry associations,
banks or credit services, pensions funds, and
various service providers
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2013 Bipartisan Budget Act
• Interim rule allowed certification for forensic
genealogists. A few became certified.
• $200 to become certified, annual fee to access
data is $995, less data, inadequate search engine
• Audit and security requirements
• $1,000 fine if SSDI information disclosed to
anyone uncertified
• Multi-user costs are $14,500 annually
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RPAC Requesting Amendment to Sec. 203
• Redact the SSN and make the non-sensitive
information available during the three-year
embargo period .
• Require the SSA to release all the information
including middle name or initial, year and state
SSN was issued, and last residence or where the
last payment was sent.
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Jan Meisels Allen
Member, RPAC
Chairperson, IAJGS Public Records Access
Monitoring Committee
President, Jewish Genealogical Society
of the Conejo Valley and Ventura County
(JGSCV)
[email protected]
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Genealogists without records
can’t do genealogy!
We are facing crises worldwide
on access to vital records
Due to misunderstanding
by those in power about Identity Theft
and due to Budget Cuts
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2011 Revision
Model State Vital Statistics Act
• Working group reported revision May 2011
• Restricts access to birth records for 125 years
• Restricts access to marriage or divorce records for
100 years
• Restricts access to death records for 75 years
• Restricts access to indices until the embargo
dates
• Requires confidentiality restrictions on indices as
well as records
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2011 Revision
Model State Vital Statistics Act
• April 2012 Dept. of Health & Human Services
(HHS) put Model Act “on hold”
• January 2013 HHS promulgates final regulation
on privacy and permits medical information on
deceased to be released after 50 years less than
revision act of 75 years
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Remember to Watch For Regulations Too
• Regulations are way for state regulators to
require actions that are not in state law and to
“reinterpret” state laws
• We have already seen changes in the privacy
language for Maine Vital Records proposed
regulations
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Recent Vital Records Legislation
Oregon—State Liaison, Leslie Lawson
• Passed with no change in embargo periods
• Limited access to the indices
Maine—State Liaison, Helen Shaw
• Law changed 2010.
• Researcher card to provide access to genealogists
• 2014 pending regulations incorporate some Model Act
provisions (to make the indices private)
Texas—State Liaison Teri Flack
• Letter writing campaign by Texas genealogists made a
difference. The bill died in committee.
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Recent Vital Records Legislation
Oklahoma—State Liaison, Billie Fogarty
• Bill passed in 2012 but no one noticed
• Only the deceased could obtain a copy of his/her death
certificate
• 2014 law changed to 125 year embargo birth records and
75 years death records.
Connecticut—State Liaison, Robert Rafford
• Birth records are closed for 100 years, but members of a
Connecticut genealogical society can have access.
• Currently public can only purchase marriage and death
records and birth over 100 years but not inspect them.
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Recent Vital Records Legislation
• Washington—State Liaison, Eric Stroschein
• Did not have administration support and never became a bill.
• Where RPAC and the genealogical community
proactively worked together, there has been
limited adverse change.
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New York City Department of Health
and Access to Birth and Death Certificates
"We do not follow that state law.
NYC is a closed jurisdiction and we
are not public records. For birth
and death certificates, you must
show entitlement. There aren't an
amount of years when our records
become public yet."
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How can you help?
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Things to Do Now
• Find out when your state’s legislature begins and
ends. Many start in January- but the end dates
vary- some go year ‘round
• See:
http://www.statescape.com/Resources/Session
s/Sessions.aspx?h=&year=2014
• Identify your representatives, their contact
information, and make your selves known to
them
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What You and Your Society Can Do
• Invite your local legislators to a Society meeting
• Send all your legislators-federal, state, local your
blog/newsletter—remember you and your
society members are their constituents
• Stop into their local offices and get to know
them and their staffs
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Why Lobbying Matters
97 percent of Congressional staff say that in-person
issues visits from constituents influence policymakers, with
46 percent reporting it has a lot of influence. (Source: 2011
poll by Congressional Management Foundation)
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Tool Kit
For
State Liaisons
See:
http://tinyurl.com/83q6t8m
Interview on Records Access
http://tinyurl.com/qhansx2
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2013 IAJGS Letter to 28 EU Members’
Ministers of Justice
• Right to be remembered- re: holocaust victims
• Genealogy assisting researchers in tracing family medical
problems that are passed on from generation to generation.
• Information included in birth, marriage, and death records is
critical to reconstructing families and tracing genetically
inherited attributes in current family members.
• Access to vital records—historical as well as current— is
essential in making certain that one is researching the
correct person.
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European Union Member 28 Countries
Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech
Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Ireland
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
United
Kingdom
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European Union Update
• European Union Court Decision RE: Google on “Right to Be
Forgotten” 80,000 removal requests in 1st month
• European Union Proposed General Data Protection
Regulation—affects genealogy historical and current records
from EU countries as vital records considered personal
information—applies to organizations based outside the
European Union if they process personal data of EU
residents.
The "right to be forgotten”
The “right to be erased”
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Recent Legislative Initiatives in Poland
• Polish Legislation to Change Access to Records—first law to
regulate access previously by ministerial dictate.
• Proposes 100 years closure of birth records; 80 years closure
of marriage and death records
• Gesher Galicia proposing 30 years death and 70-75 for
marriage
• Shorten time periods for USC to transfer records to Polish
State Archives where records are open for public.
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Fred Moss, JD, LL.M.
• Legal Advisor for FGS
• Former Associate Dean & Professor, Texas
Wesleyan School of Law
• Colonel (retired) Judge Advocate General Corps.
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Proverb
•Things are rarely done in Washington
DC for the reason publicly stated.
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The Hidden Agenda?
•SSA wants out of the DMF business
•Incrementally dismantling the DMF
•Alternatives?
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Is the SSDI/DMF issue . . .
An Access issue?
A Preservation issue?
Both?
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RPAC Posture
• The Genealogical Community would rather be
• Thought of as a Stakeholder & Resource, NOT
• A mere constituency to be placated,
• Or safely ignored.
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Genealogists Vote
To order pins
Access @FGS.org
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Genealogists’
Declaration of Rights
Stop by the RPAC Booth # 604
and sign the Declaration!
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FGS-IAJGS-NGS-Sponsored
• The Declaration of Rights is a statement
advocating open access to federal, state, and
local public records.
• The Declaration affirms America’s long history of
open public records, which has been threatened
the last few years over concerns about identity
theft and privacy.
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Genealogists’ Declaration of Rights
• Will be used to show state and federal
legislators and regulators that genealogists
support open records and
• Genealogists Vote!!
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Signatures to Date: 3,500+
• Online
2,522
• NGS
537
• Jamboree 214
• IAJGS
203
• CA/MA/OH
Societies
59
• Total
3,535
How many will
sign at FGS?
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Sign the Declaration
Sign under the state tab
in which you are registered to vote
Encourage your friends and
society members to sign
electronically online
http://bit.ly/gen-declaration
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What is Needed NOW ?
• We need you to deliver the message to your
elected representatives?
• Do you know who they are? Do they know you?
• Call on your state and federal legislators
• Office Visits during Congressional Recesses
• August and holidays
• We also recommend joint calls between
President of State Genealogical Society and APG
Chapter President
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Deliver the Following Message
• Fraud from identity theft of the deceased was
less than 2% of the total in 2011 and improving
• The IRS can install more filters to flag
inconsistent/fraudulent tax returns
• Genealogy websites had already closed access to
the SSDI for 2-10 years
• Access to the DMF is needed to prevent tax
fraud, so as a result of the 2013 Bipartisan
Budget Act, the amount of fraud will increase
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Amend Sec. 203 of the 2013 Bipartisan
Budget Agreement
• Redact the SSN from the Death Master File for
three years, and provide the non-sensitive
information to data aggregators such as
Ancestry and FamilySearch.
• Require the Social Security Administration to
release all the available information including
middle name or initial, year and state the SSN
was issued, and last residence.
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RPAC Blog Posts
• These slides are posted on the RPAC Blog at
http://www.fgs.org/RPAC
• Talking points for your visits with your legislators
• Sample letter to write your legislators
• RPAC Brochure on Open Records
• Statements sent to Congressional Committees
and the Department of Commerce about why
genealogists need access to the SSDI
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Contact RPAC
• Watch the RPAC Blog www.fgs.org/rpac for
updates
• Contact RPAC at [email protected]
• We can help!
• We need to know early and stay informed
throughout the legislative process
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Questions?
http://www.fgs.org/rpac
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