Bill
HB 5303
Allows issuing a new birth certificate with a sex designation different from birth upon signed director-approved form, removing surgical affidavit requirement.
Status and citation
- Enacted as Act No. 230, Public Acts of 2024 (amending MCL 333.2831 and 333.2872).
- Approved by the Governor Jan 17, 2025; filed with Secretary of State Jan 17, 2025.
- Effective date: April 2, 2025.
- Introduced Nov 3, 2023 (Rep. Helena Scott). Companion: SB 2529.
Purpose
- To revise Michigan’s birth‑certificate rules to simplify issuance of a new certificate of live birth showing a sex designation different from that assigned at birth, and to clarify procedures for name, parentage, and adoption changes on birth records.
Key provisions and changes
- New birth certificate on request to show a sex designation other than that on the original certificate (amends MCL 333.2831(c)):
- The request must include a director‑approved form signed by the individual indicating the desired sex designation.
- The state registrar is prohibited from requiring any additional documentation or certification beyond the approved form (and a court order if that accompanies a name change).
- Earlier versions requiring a physician’s affidavit certifying sex‑reassignment surgery were removed; the enacted version relies on the signed form.
- Name changes and addenda (amends MCL 333.2872):
- On receipt of a certified copy of a court order changing a person’s name, the registrar will affix an addendum to the birth certificate showing the new name and identifying the order.
- A new live birth certificate and sealing of the original are required only if the court order specifically directs the registrar to create a new certificate (or in certain minor‑name‑change circumstances under probate law).
- The requirement that a court order must specifically direct the registrar to create a new certificate does not apply to a new certificate issued under the sex‑designation provision (2831(c)).
- Other authorizations retained/clarified:
- New certificates continue to be created for adoption reports and when parentage is established (including judgments under the Assisted Reproduction and Surrogacy Parentage Act).
Who is affected
- Individuals seeking amended birth certificates to reflect a different sex designation (including transgender and nonbinary persons): lowers documentary barriers by eliminating the surgery affidavit and allowing a signed director‑approved form as sufficient.
- State Registrar and Department of Health & Human Services: must adopt an approved form and update procedures to process requests without requiring extra documentation.
- Probate courts and individuals filing name‑change or parentage orders: clarifies when addenda vs. new sealed certificates are created.
- Parents of children whose paternity is established and adoptees: existing processes remain for issuance of new certificates for those circumstances.
Procedural/timeline notes
- Bill passed both chambers in late 2024 and was enrolled and approved in January 2025.
- Agencies will need to develop and publish the director‑approved form and update administrative processes before the effective date (April 2, 2025).
Potential impacts (practical considerations)
- Simplifies access to birth certificates reflecting an individual’s affirmed sex designation; likely reduces need for court orders or medical documentation in such cases.
- May require administrative changes at the state registrar’s office (form design, guidance, training).
- Interactions with federal or other-state systems that require specific documentation for sex‑marker changes (e.g., Social Security, passport) are unchanged by this state law; affected individuals may still need other agencies’ procedures to change records beyond Michigan birth certificates.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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