State Representative Ryan Spain (R-Peoria) has passed constituent driven legislation in the Illinois House this week that provides that, if a death occurs in this State but in a county outside the deceased’s county of residence, the local registrar of the district in which the death certificate was filed shall, within 7 days after its filing, send a copy of the death certificate to the local registrar in the district where the deceased’s county of residence is located.
Currently in Illinois, each death that occurs in the State has to be registered by filing a death certificate with the local registrar of the district in which the death occurred, or in some instances, where the body was found. That filing must take place within 7 days after the death and prior to cremation or removal of the body from the State. The exception is when death is subject to investigation by the coroner or medical examiner. The current statute however, does not contemplate deaths occurring in other counties.
The measure came from the family of an individual who died in a county outside the one where he lived. According to Representative Spain, the family experienced difficulty getting the death certificate in the home county from the county where he died.
HB4993 was given unanimous approval on Tuesday and now heads to the House for consideration.