South Carolina H 5487: Citizens' Arrest; statute repealed

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 5487 Text of Previous Version (Apr. 01, 2026) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 5487

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH 
CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 44-63-140, RELATING TO SUPPLEMENTARY 
OR AMENDED BIRTH CERTIFICATES FOR ADOPTED PERSONS, SO AS TO ALLOW AN ADOPTED 
PERSON EIGHTEEN YEARS OR OLDER TO RECEIVE A COPY OF THE PERSON'S ORIGINAL BIRTH 
CERTIFICATE UPON SUBMITTING A WRITTEN REQUEST TO THE STATE REGISTRAR; AND FOR 
OTHER PURPOSES.

Be it enacted by the 
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. Section 44-63-140(1) of the S.C. Code is amended to 
read:

 (1)(a) For a person born in this State, 
the state registrar shall prepare a supplementary Certificate of Birth in the 
name of the adoptee, free of any reference to or indication of the fact that 
the child was adopted and showing the adoptive parents as the parents, except 
that an adoption of an adult must display the words "By Adoption" on the face 
of the amended certificate.

 (b)(i) The original birth certificate and 
the evidence of adoption are not subject to inspection, except upon order of a 
court of competent jurisdiction or as provided in this subitem.

 (ii) 
A person eighteen years of age or older who was born in the State of South 
Carolina and who has had his original certificate of birth sealed due to an 
adoption may, upon written request to the state registrar, receive a copy of 
his original birth certificate and any evidence of the adoption held with the 
original record, regardless of the date on which the adoption was finalized., if:

 (A) a biological parent has completed 
a form consenting to the release of the original birth certificate or has 
provided notarized written consent to the release of the original birth 
certificate; or

 (B) the adoptee brings to the 
department a certification from the department or an office of vital records in 
another jurisdiction certifying that a biological parent is deceased.

 This provision 
allows adoptees who have reached the age of eighteen to access a copy of their 
original birth certificate and accompanying evidence of adoption with the 
consent of a biological parent, or if a biological parent is deceased, and 
applies retroactively, regardless of the date on which the adoption was 
finalized.

 (iii) The form referenced in subitem (b)(ii) also must allow for a 
biological parent to indicate contact preference and to consent to release of 
medical history pursuant to item (1)(c). The copy of the original birth 
certificate must be in a form that clearly indicates it is not a certified copy 
and that it may not be used for legal purposes. All procedures, fees, and 
waiting periods applicable to nonadopted citizens born in the State of South 
Carolina seeking copies of certificates of birth apply.

 (iv) Whenever an adoptee who has 
reached the age of eighteen applies for a copy of his original birth 
certificate and accompanying evidence of adoption, the department shall redact 
from the copy all information as to any biological parent that has not given 
consent in accordance with this section, unless certified as deceased.

 (c) 
The department shall develop a contact preference form and a medical history 
form to provide to a biological parent upon request to be completed at his 
option. Upon completion, a contact preference form and a medical history form 
must be filed with the state registrar and accompany an original sealed birth 
certificate issued to an adoptee pursuant to subitem (b).

 (d)(i) The contact preference form must allow the biological 
parent to indicate whether he has completed or updated a medical history form 
and must allow the biological parent to choose one of the following contact 
options and provide contact information as appropriate:

 (1)(A) I would like to be 
contacted.

 (2)(B) I would prefer to be 
contacted only through an intermediary.

 (3)(C) I prefer not to be 
contacted at this time. If I decide later that I would like to be contacted, I 
will submit an updated contact preference form to the state registrar.

 (ii) Only department staff 
authorized to process applications made pursuant to subitem (b) may process 
contact preference and medical history forms.

 (e)(i) The medical history form and contact preference form 
are confidential communications from the biological parent to the person named 
on the sealed birth certificate and must be placed in a sealed file upon 
receipt from the biological parent in the file containing the sealed original 
birth certificate.

 (ii) The sealed file 
containing the contact preference form and medical history form must be 
released to an adoptee requesting the adoptee's own original birth certificate 
pursuant to subitem (b).

 (iii) The contact p