69.03 Powers and duties of state registrar. The state registrar shall:

(1) Administer and enforce this subchapter.

(2) Direct the system of vital records.

(3) Supervise the office of vital records.

(4) Act as custodian of all records in the office of vital records and preserve, index and certify the records by photographic, electronic or other means, as determined by the state registrar.

(5) Under this subchapter, accept for registration, assign a date of acceptance, and index and preserve original marriage documents and records of birth, death, divorce, and domestic partnership. Indexes prepared for public use under s. 69.20 (3) (e) shall consist of the registrant's full name, date of the event, county of occurrence, county of residence, and, at the discretion of the state registrar, state file number. Notwithstanding s. 69.24 (1) (e), the state registrar may transfer the paper original of a vital record to optical disc or electronic format in accordance with s. 16.61 (5) or to microfilm reproduction in accordance with s. 16.61 (6) and destroy the paper original of any vital record that is so converted. For the purposes of this subchapter, the electronic format version or microfilm reproduction version of the paper original of a vital record that has been transferred under this subsection shall serve as the original vital record.

(6) Direct any activity related to the operation of the system of vital records.

(7) Conduct training programs to promote uniformity of policy and procedures in this state in the system of vital records.

(8) Prescribe, furnish and distribute forms required under this subchapter and chs. 765 and 770 and prescribe any other means for transmission of data necessary to accomplish complete and accurate reporting and registration. When reasonable and possible the state registrar shall base the prescribed forms on the standard forms recommended by the federal agency responsible for administering the national system of vital statistics.

(9) Prepare and publish an annual report of vital statistics.

(10) At the request of a local health department, provide the local health department with vital statistics for local health planning and program activities and establish a schedule with the local health department for transmittal of the vital statistics.

(11) Make available any vital record or court-ordered change of fact prepared by the state registrar under ss. 69.14 (1) (h) and (2) (a) and (b) 5., 69.15, 69.16 (2) and 69.19 or any authorization for an amendment under ss. 69.11 and 69.12 to the register of deeds of the county where the event which is the subject of the vital record, change of fact or amendment occurred and, if the event occurred in a city which is a registration district and responsible for registering the event, to the city registrar of the city.

(12) Accept fetal death reports under s. 69.18 (1) (e). The state registrar may record the information on the reports for use in medical research and may use the information to compile statistics. After recording the information on a fetal death report, the state registrar shall destroy the report.

(13) As the state registrar determines necessary, report violations of this subchapter to the district attorney of the county in which the violation is alleged to have occurred and include a statement of facts and circumstances. The state registrar may request the assistance of the department of justice as he or she determines necessary for the enforcement of this subchapter.

(14) Provide hospitals with a pamphlet containing information for parents about birth records including how to add the name of the father of a child whose parents were not married at any time from the conception to the birth of the child to the birth record under s. 69.15 (3) (b) or, if the father will not sign an affidavit, through a paternity action; the legal significance and future medical advantages to the child of having the father's name inserted on the birth record; and the availability of services under s. 49.22.

(15) Periodically provide to each county child support agency under s. 59.53 (5) a list of names and, notwithstanding s. 69.20 (2) (a), addresses of registrants who reside in that county for whom no father's name has been inserted on the registrant's birth record within 6 months of birth.

History: 1985 a. 315; 1987 a. 413; 1993 a. 27; 1995 a. 201, 404; 1997 a. 27; 2001 a. 16; 2009 a. 28; 2017 a. 334.