West Virginia 2026 Session Status: Introduced Bipartisan · 4 R · 1 D cosponsors

HB 4489 — Authorizing the DMV to issue certain vital records in the custody of the state registrar

Last action — To House Finance

  1. 1
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House of Delegates
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 2026 Session. It reached “Introduced” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there are no live odds of enactment. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Authorizing the DMV to issue certain vital records in the custody of the state registrar

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

164 added · 63 removed

Plain-language change summary

The revised version of HB 4489 includes several important additions and clarifications. Notably, it establishes specific requirements for creating a divorce certificate, outlines the fee structure for issuing vital records, and ensures that the Division of Motor Vehicles will adhere to the rules set by the State Registrar. These changes matter because they streamline the process for accessing vital records, enhance accountability, and set clear guidelines for both the DMV and the State Registrar, which should lead to better public service and oversight.

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WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION Introduced FISCAL House Bill 4489 NOTE By Delegates G.
CS for HB 4489 WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION Committee Substitute for House Bill 4489 By Delegates G.
Howell, Bell, Jeffries, and Street [Introduced January 19, 2026;
Howell, Bell, Jeffries, and Street [Originating in the Committee on Energy and Public Works then Finance;
referred to the Committee on Energy and Public Works then Finance] Intr HB 2026R1106 A BILL to amend and reenact §16-5-5 and §16-5-29 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended;
Reported on -----, 2026] CS for HB 4489 A BILL to amend and reenact §16-5-5, §16-5-29, and §16-5-34 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended;
to require the Division of Motor Vehicles to adhere to the State Registrar’s rules;
requiring the Division of Motor Vehicles to adhere to the State Registrar’s rules;
authorize the Division of Motor Vehicles to collect a fee for issuing vital records and transmit those fees to the State Registrar monthly;
authorizing the Division of Motor Vehicles to collect a fee for issuing vital records, providing a fee structure, and directing the Division to transmit those fees to the State Registrar monthly;
and require the Commissioner of the Division of Health and Human Resources and Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding to implement a program that allows the Division of Motor Vehicles access to certain vital records to issue to customers.
defining terms;
creating a special revenue account for receipt of those fees and providing requirements for dispersal of those fees;
requiring the State Registrar to create a certificate of divorce and providing the requirements for that certificate;
requiring the Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Health and Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding to implement a program that allows the Division of Motor Vehicles access to certain vital records to issue to customers;
providing the guidelines to be followed in that Memorandum, including security guidelines;
providing requirements for the use of certain paper for printing the relevant vital record documents;
specifying that the State Registrar shall remain the sole legal custodian of all vital records and providing oversight of the Division of Motor Vehicles access to these records;
.providing eligibility standards must mirror those of the State Registrar;
and providing for auditing of issuance activities by the State Auditor and the compilation and distribution of an annual report.
(2) Direct and supervise the system of vital statistics and the operation of the section of vital statistics, and act as custodian of its records;
(2) Direct and supervise the system of vital statistics and the operation of the section of 1 CS for HB 4489 vital statistics, and act as custodian of its records;
(6) Prepare and publish annual reports of vital statistics of this state, and other reports Intr HB 2026R1106 required by the commissioner;
(6) Prepare and publish annual reports of vital statistics of this state, and other reports required by the commissioner;
(b) Beginning July 1, 2026, the Division of Motor Vehicles shall be authorized to issue records of birth, death, marriage or divorce, in the custody of the State Registrar.
(b) Beginning July 1, 2027, the Division of Motor Vehicles shall be authorized to issue records of birth, death, marriage or divorce, in the custody of the State Registrar.
(3) Investigate, personally or by a duly delegated representative, cases of irregularity or violation of law arising under the provisions of this article;
2 CS for HB 4489 (3) Investigate, personally or by a duly delegated representative, cases of irregularity or violation of law arising under the provisions of this article;
2 Intr HB 2026R1106 (a) The commissioner shall prescribe the fees to be charged and collected by the state Registrar for certified copies of certificates or records, not to exceed $10 per copy, or for a search of the files or records when no copy is made:
(a) The commissioner shall prescribe the fees to be charged and collected by the state Registrar for certified copies of certificates or records, not to exceed $10 per copy, or for a search of the files or records when no copy is made:
(d) Subject to the provisions set forth in section two, article two, chapter twelve of this code, there is hereby continued in the state Treasury a separate account which shall be designated "the vital statistics account." (e) After July 1, 2006, and subject to the provisions set forth in section two, article two, chapter twelve of this code, there is established in the state Treasury a separate account which shall be designated "the vital statistics improvement fund." Funds deposited in this account will be used to modernize and automate the system of vital statistics in this state and may not be used to supplant existing funding necessary for the daily operation of the system of vital statistics.
(d) Subject to the provisions set forth in section two, article two, chapter twelve of this code, there is hereby continued in the state Treasury a separate account which shall be designated "the vital statistics account." (e) (1) After July 1, 2006, and subject to the provisions set forth in section two, article two, chapter twelve of this code, there is established in the state Treasury a separate account which shall be designated "the vital statistics improvement fund." Funds deposited in this account will be used to modernize and automate the system of vital statistics in this state and may not be used to supplant existing funding necessary for the daily operation of the system of vital statistics.
Funds in this account will be retained in a nonlapsing fund for the improvement of the system of vital statistics.
Funds in 3 CS for HB 4489 this account will be retained in a nonlapsing fund for the improvement of the system of vital statistics.
(2) After July 1, 2027, and subject to the provisions set forth in §12-2-7 of this code, there is established in the state Treasury a separate account which shall be designated "the DMV vital records fund." Funds deposited in this account will be used to administer the issuance of certified copies of vital records by the Division.
Funds in this account will be retained in a nonlapsing fund for this purpose.
(g) The commissioner is authorized to expend the moneys deposited in the vital statistics Intr HB 2026R1106 account in accordance with the laws of this state as necessary to implement this article.
(g) The commissioner is authorized to expend the moneys deposited in the vital statistics account in accordance with the laws of this state as necessary to implement this article.
(i) The Division of Motor Vehicles shall collect a minimum fee of $12 plus the actual cost the State Registrar collects for any copy of a vital record.
(i) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, when a certified copy of a vital record is issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles pursuant to §16-5-39 of this code, the following fee structure shall apply.
For each copy of a vital record that the Division of Motor Vehicles issues, it shall retain $12 and shall transmit the actual cost of a vital record to the State Registrar on a monthly basis to ensure that the State Registrar recovers all costs associated with the issuance of certified copies of vital records at Division of Motor Vehicles facilities.
(2) The Division of Motor Vehicles shall collect a minimum fee of $12 plus the actual cost the State Registrar collects for any copy of a vital record.
For each copy of a vital record that the Division of Motor Vehicles issues, it shall retain $12 and shall transmit the actual cost of providing a vital record to the State Registrar on a monthly basis to ensure that the State Registrar recovers 4 CS for HB 4489 all costs associated with the issuance of certified copies of vital records at Division of Motor Vehicles facilities.
“Actual cost” means the per-record fee established by the State Registrar to recover the direct costs associated with issuing certified copies of vital records, including database access, system maintenance, certification, and security features, as set forth in rules promulgated by the State Registrar.
(3) The Division of Motor Vehicles shall not establish, modify, supplement, or independently adjust any fee associated with the issuance of certified copies of vital records.
(4) The Division of Motor Vehicles shall deposit the portion of fees it is authorized to retain into a special revenue account within the State Treasury, subject to legislative appropriation, for the administration of the provisions of this section relating to the issuance of certified copies of vital records.
§16-5-34.
Uniform system of registration of marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage.
(a) To encourage an efficient and uniform system of registration of marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage may be established in this state, the state Registrar shall provide for the registration of each marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage which occurs in this state.
(b) The commissioner may, subject to legislative rule:
(1) Install a statewide system of registering, indexing, and preserving records of marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage;
(2) Give instructions, and prescribe and furnish forms, for collecting, transcribing, compiling and preserving records and statistics of marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage;
and (3) Make and publish a statistical report of marriage, divorce and annulment of marriage in this state.
(c) Beginning on July 1, 2027, the Commissioner may issue certificates of divorce, which memorialize the dissolution of the marriage, and which shall contain the names of the parties, the date of dissolution, the court under whose authority the divorce was granted and any changes of 5 CS for HB 4489 name by either of the parties.
These shall stand as a valid public record within this state for purposes of proving a change of name.
(a) Beginning July 1, 2026, the Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles shall be authorized to issue certified copies of birth, death, marriage and divorce records in the custody of the State Registrar.
(a) (1) The Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles shall be authorized to issue certified copies of birth, death, marriage and divorce records in the custody of the State Registrar.
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(b) The Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Health or his or her designee and the Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles or his or her designee shall enter into a memorandum of understanding to successfully develop and implement a program that shall allow the Division of Motor Vehicles to issue certified copies of vital records that are in electronic form, including a comprehensive plan with defined responsibilities for each agency.
Issuance authority under this section is limited to vital records that are available in electronic form and authorized for issuance by the State Registrar.
The memorandum of understanding shall also include provisions to ensure that the integrity and security of the system of vital records is maintained, and shall specify audit requirements, inventory and security paper usage monitoring requirements, and training requirements including the proper methods for issuing certified copies of vital records, assessing the eligibility of a requester to obtain a certified copy of a vital record, and verifying the identification of the requester.
Access to vital records systems by the Division of Motor Vehicles shall be limited to transaction-specific access necessary to issue authorized records and shall comply with least-privilege security standards, logging, monitoring, and breach reporting requirements.
Intr HB 2026R1106 NOTE:
(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the authority granted to the Division of Motor Vehicles under this section shall take effect July 1, 2027.
The purpose of this bill is to provide the authority to the Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles to issue certain vital records subject to the rules and regulations of the State Registrar, to allow the DMV to collect fees for issuing vital records that will be provided to the State Registrar, and for the Commissioners of the DMV and DH Department of Health to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding to implement a program that allows the DH Department of Health to provide access to certain vital records to the DMV.
The Division of Motor Vehicles and the Department of Health shall, if necessary, propose rules for legislative approval and promulgate emergency rules in accordance with the provisions of §29A-3-1 et seq.
of this code to implement the provisions of this section.
(b) (1) Prior to July 1, 2027, the Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Health or his or her designee and the Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles or his or her designee shall enter into a memorandum of understanding to successfully develop and implement a program that shall allow the Division of Motor Vehicles to issue certified copies of vital records that are in electronic form, including a comprehensive plan with defined responsibilities for each agency.
The memorandum of understanding and any required legislative rules shall be executed and promulgated sufficiently in advance of that date to ensure uninterrupted statewide implementation.
(2) The memorandum of understanding shall include, at a minimum:
(A) provisions to ensure that the integrity and security of the system of vital records is maintained, and shall specify access controls;
(B) audit requirements and audit procedures;
6 CS for HB 4489 (C) inventory and security paper usage monitoring requirements, including access controls;
(D) training requirements including the proper methods for issuing certified copies of vital records, assessing the eligibility of a requester to obtain a certified copy of a vital record, and verifying the identification of the requester;
and (E) compliance monitoring procedures.
(c) Certified documents issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles pursuant to this section shall be printed on common bonded security paper approved by the State Registrar.
The documents shall prominently display the words “Certificate of”, followed by the applicable document type, including title, birth, death, marriage, or divorce, and shall meet all authentication and security standards established by the State Registrar.
The format shall permit printing on standard office printers and shall not require specialized or dedicated printing equipment, provided all certification, security, and audit requirements are met.
(d) (1) The State Registrar shall remain the sole legal custodian of all vital records.
The Division of Motor Vehicles is authorized solely to act as a noncustodial issuing agent pursuant to this section.
(2) The Division of Motor Vehicles shall be responsible for errors, improper issuance, or procedural deficiencies arising from its issuance activities.
The State Registrar shall remain responsible for the integrity, accuracy, and security of the underlying system of vital records.
(3) (A) If the State Registrar identifies noncompliance, procedural errors, or administrative deficiencies related to issuance by the Division of Motor Vehicles, the Registrar shall provide written notice specifying the deficiencies.
The Division of Motor Vehicles shall have 30 days from receipt of notice to correct the identified issues.
(B) During the correction period, issuance of certified copies of vital records shall continue uninterrupted, unless the State Registrar determines that continued issuance would result in an 7 CS for HB 4489 imminent risk of unlawful disclosure of protected records.
(C) If the deficiencies are not corrected within the 30-day period, the State Registrar may require the Division of Motor Vehicles to submit a corrective action plan, including timelines, training measures, or procedural adjustments, and may conduct enhanced monitoring or audits to ensure compliance.
(D) Issuance authority may not be suspended or terminated solely due to administrative or procedural deficiencies absent a finding of imminent risk to the confidentiality or lawful issuance of vital records.
(4) (A) The Division of Motor Vehicles shall apply eligibility standards for the issuance of certified copies of vital records strictly in accordance with the rules of the State Registrar and shall not exercise independent discretion in determining eligibility.
(B) The Division of Motor Vehicles may not issue sealed records, adoption-related records, confidential amendments, or any vital record otherwise restricted by law or by rule of the State Registrar.
(5) Issuance activities under this section shall be subject to audit by the State Auditor.
The Division of Motor Vehicles and the State Registrar shall prepare and make available an annual report detailing issuance volume, revenue collected, audit findings, and corrective actions taken.
NOTE:
The purpose of this bill is to provide the authority to the Commissioner of the Division of Motor Vehicles to issue certain vital records subject to the rules and regulations of the State Registrar, to allow the DMV to collect fees for issuing vital records that will be provided to the State Registrar, and for the Commissioners of the DMV and Department of Health to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding to implement a program that allows the Department of Health to provide access to certain vital records to the DMV.
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Action History

  1. Filed for introduction

  2. To Energy and Public Works then Finance

  3. Introduced in House

  4. To House Energy and Public Works

  5. Markup Discussion

  6. By substitute, do pass, but first to Finance

  7. To House Finance

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 4 co-sponsors · 147 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (4)

Not signed on (147)

147 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

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Frequently asked questions

What does HB 4489 do?
Authorizing the DMV to issue certain vital records in the custody of the state registrar
Who sponsors HB 4489?
HB 4489 is sponsored by Gary G. Howell (Republican), Bill Bell (Republican), Dean Jeffries (Republican), George Street (Republican), and Kayla Young (Democrat).
What is the current status of HB 4489?
This bill died with 2026 Session. It reached “Introduced” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track HB 4489?
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