An Act relative to birth certificate changes

194th Legislature (2025-2026) Introduced by Manny Cruz

Creates a 30-day cross-agency process: after a court orders a minor's name change, clerks update the birth record and provide the parents a free certified copy.

Accompanied a study order, see H5234

H 3955 — An Act relative to birth certificate changes

Status: Reporting date extended until Friday, November 7, 2025
Introduced: March 31, 2025
Sponsor: Rep. Manny Cruz (7th Essex)
Related: HD 3791 (replaces)
Hearing/Actions:
- Hearing scheduled for 7/10/2025 (09:00 AM – 01:00 PM, in A-1)
- Senate concurrence: 4/3/2025
- Reporting date extended: 10/08/2025 to 11/07/2025

Purpose and intent

The bill modernizes and streamlines the process for updating a minor’s birth record when the minor’s name is changed by a court order. It creates a clear, timely workflow between the court issuing a name-change decree and the city or town clerk updating the birth record, while ensuring that the minor’s parents receive a free certified copy of the corrected record.

Key provisions

Section 1 (amendment to Chapter 46, Section 13)

Adds subsection (m): Within 30 days after the city or town clerk receives a certified decree of change of name for a minor (per the second paragraph of Section 12 of Chapter 210), the clerk must correct, amend, or supplement the minor’s birth record in the clerk’s office.
The clerk must provide the parents of the minor with a free certified copy of the corrected, amended, or supplemented birth record.

Section 2 (amendment to Chapter 210, Section 12)

Adds a paragraph requiring that within 30 days of granting a petition for a change of name for a minor, the court must send a certified decree of change of name to the city or town clerk where the minor’s birth occurred.

Who is affected

Minor who undergoes a name change

Parents or guardians of the minor

City or town clerks responsible for birth records

Courts that grant minor name-change petitions

Procedural and timeline aspects

Court action: After granting a minor’s name-change petition, the court has 30 days to send a certified decree of change of name to the relevant clerk.

Clerk action: Upon receipt of the decree, the city or town clerk has 30 days to correct, amend, or supplement the minor’s birth record and must provide a free certified copy to the parents.

Result: More rapid and reliable updating of official birth records to reflect a minor’s name change, with no cost to the parents for the corrected record.

Fiscal and implementation notes (implicit)

The bill imposes an obligation on clerks to issue a free certified copy, which may have budgetary implications for municipalities to cover the cost of copies at no charge to families.

No specific funding provisions are included in the text provided; implementation details would be determined during fiscal review.

Relationship to other legislation

House Bill 3955 is associated with House Document 3791 and is described as replacing that earlier version in some references. The current text reflects the proposed changes to accounts of birth record updates linked to minor name changes.

Summary takeaway

H 3955 creates a streamlined, 30-day cross-agency process to ensure that a minor’s birth certificate is updated promptly after a court orders a name change, with the added provision that parents receive a free certified copy of the updated birth record.