Legislators consider removing sex from birth certificates
Newly reintroduced House Bill 1313 asks legislators one more time to support removing sex from birth certificates.
The bill, originated by state Rep. Ben Sanchez, D-153, Abington, suggests reporting sex on the birth certificate is antiquated, citing precedent set when the reporting of racial information on birth certificates was no longer required.
Sanchez attests in the bill memo that reporting sex information is redundant, because it is reported on the U.S. Standard Certificate of Live Birth system, a form used by the National Center for Health Statistics, part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Reps. Tim Twardzik, R-123, Butler Twp., and Jim Haddock, D-118, Pittston Twp. agree that removing sex from birth certificates is not something they will support, as legislation suggesting the move makes its way through the house and senate yet again.
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Reps. Jim Haddock, D-118, Pittston Twp., and Tim Twardzik, R-123, Butler Twp., agree that removing sex from birth certificates is not something they will support, as legislation suggesting the move makes its way through the house and senate yet again.
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Reps. Tim Twardzik, R-123, Butler Twp., and Jim Haddock, D-118, Pittston Twp. agree that removing sex from birth certificates is not something they will support, as legislation suggesting the move makes its way through the house and senate yet again.
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No state lawmakers that represent Lackawanna or Luzerne counties' constituents are cosponsoring the legislation at this point.
State Rep. Jim Haddock, D-118, Pittston Twp., said that when the bill circulated last year it didn't pass, and he doesn't expect it to pass this time, either.
A self-titled 'moderate Democrat,' Haddock said that while he admires Sanchez and considers him a personal friend, the bill doesn't excite him.
'I think that it's a bill that is very liberal, and very surprising to people,' Haddock said, adding that with a majority of just one in the House, he believes Democrats should 'slow down' and 'rethink our position.'
'I would rather run extremely important quality bills that run kitchen table issues, jobs and the economy, and this bill just doesn't fit,' Haddock said. 'This one, I'd probably have a hard time supporting at this point.'
Haddock said the topic is of strong importance in part of Pennsylvania, and Sanchez is doing what is asked of him by those who live there.
Abington, in Montgomery County, where Sanchez calls home, is a tree-dense suburb of Philadelphia, filled with stone estates and a population of 58,000. Gov. Josh Shapiro grew up and keeps a home there.
'He's in a different district that is very liberal, and his job is to represent his constituents,' Haddock said of Sanchez. 'And my job is to represent my constituents.'
State Rep. Tim Twardzik, R-123, of Frackville in neighboring Schuylkill County said the bill was news to him, and said he was a 'no' in regard to supporting it.
'The goal is to remove the sex of a child on a birth certificate; that is not something I would tend to support,' Twardzik said. 'Our staff is kind of scratching our heads, saying, 'That will just lead to a lot of trouble down the road.' '
Twardzik said removing a person's sex at birth could lead to complications for people trying to get a Real ID, birth certificate down the road, driver's license and more.
'It's a problem looking for a place to land,' Twardzik concluded. 'I do not support.'
Corinne Goodwin, the executive director of the Eastern PA Transequity Project, said the bill, which is part of a package of legislation, will reduce bias aimed at transgender people.
'It's important, because if you get hired for a job, and you have to produce a document that proves your identity and another that proves your citizenship … but the birth certificate may have the old gender information on it, that immediately outs you as a transgender person and opens you up for discrimination,' Goodwin explained.
Goodwin added that the bill package is 'largely focused on reforming the legal name change,' which will benefit everyone.
'The law currently requires anybody changing their name to publish your intent to do that in a county newspaper and in your county's law journal,' Goodwin explained. 'What these ads say is, John Doe is changing their name to Jane Doe, and if anybody has a problem with that, they should show up for court at the day and time.'
Goodwin says this law puts people in danger.
'If you are a person who is changing your name to flee a domestic abuser, it lets that abuser know where you're going to be and when,' said Goodwin. 'It isn't just about transgender folks. Its about people and ensuring their safety.'
The bill memo explains one way discrimination is reduced if the law passes.
'As the times change, so does the need to assess our antiquated practices and procedures. Precedent already exists for amending what is required on birth certificate documents. For example, birth certificates used to include the race of an individual's parents, which had historically been used as a part of systemic discrimination. As we have seen, removing race from birth certificate applications has had no impact on the document's original intention, which is to prove the birth itself and the place in which the child was born. By removing sex from birth certificates, we eliminate yet another form of discrimination people endure when there is an error in that category.'
Currently, the bill is supported by 13 state representatives, all Democrats, who work with constituents in southeastern and south central counties, including those in Chester, York, Lancaster, and Philadelphia counties.
A similar bill, S.B. 477, has been introduced in the Senate by state Sen. Tim Kearney, D-26, Swarthmore.
Mary Ann Moran-Savakinus, the executive director of the Lackawanna Historical Society, said removal of sex from the birth certificate would not 'erase history,' but instead would add another layer to any research involved by genealogists.
'It would change the way we look up information,' Moran-Savakinus said. 'It'd just add to the process of searching. There'd probably have to be a couple more steps.'
She explained that when her organization assists people in searching for birth certificates, people are commonly trying to find statistics — place, date of birth, date and name are primarily the information they are seeking.
'Gender never comes up, because it hasn't been this kind of issue before,' she said, adding that often, people are seeking 'all of the facts' regarding their ancestors, and that removal of that piece of information would just mean, going forward, that it would need to be acquired in a different way.
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