2005 Texas Health & Safety Code CHAPTER 193. DEATH RECORDS

HEALTH & SAFETY CODE

CHAPTER 193. DEATH RECORDS


	§ 193.001. FORM OF CERTIFICATE.  (a) The department shall 
prescribe the form and contents of death certificates and fetal 
death certificates.
	(b)  The social security number shall be recorded on the 
death certificate and on any other records related to the death.
	(c)  The department shall require death certificates and 
fetal death certificates to include the name of the place and the 
specific number of the plot, crypt, lawn crypt, or niche in which a 
decedent's remains will be interred or, if the remains will not be 
interred, the place and manner of other disposition.
	(d)  The bureau of vital statistics and each local registrar 
shall make the information provided under Subsection (c) available 
to the public and may charge a fee in an amount prescribed under 
Section 191.0045 for providing that service.

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.  Amended 
by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 502, § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1995;  Acts 
1999, 76th Leg., ch. 556, § 73, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.


	§ 193.002. PERSON REQUIRED TO FILE.  The person in charge 
of interment or in charge of removal of a body from a registration 
district for disposition shall:
		(1)  obtain and file the death certificate or fetal 
death certificate;      
		(2)  enter on the certificate the information relating 
to disposition of the body;  and
		(3)  sign the certificate.                                                    

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.                    


	§ 193.003. TIME AND PLACE FOR FILING DEATH 
CERTIFICATE.  (a) Not later than the 10th day after the date of a 
death that occurs in this state, a death certificate shall be filed 
with the local registrar of the registration district in which:
		(1)  the death occurs;  or                                                    
		(2)  the body is found, if the place of death is not 
known.                 
	(b)  Subject to board rules, a certificate of a fetal death 
that occurs in this state shall be filed with the local registrar of 
the registration district in which:
		(1)  the fetal death occurs;  or                                              
		(2)  the body is found, if the place of fetal death is 
not known.           

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.                    


	§ 193.004. PERSONAL AND MEDICAL INFORMATION.  (a) The 
person required to file a death certificate shall obtain the 
required personal information from a competent person with 
knowledge of the facts.
	(b)  The person required to file a fetal death certificate 
shall obtain the required personal information from the person best 
qualified to furnish the information.
	(c)  A person required to obtain information under this 
section shall obtain the information over the signature of the 
person who furnishes the information.

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.  Amended 
by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1425, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.


	§ 193.005. PERSONAL INFORMATION.  (a) A person required 
to file a death certificate or fetal death certificate shall obtain 
the required medical certification from an attending physician if 
the death occurred under medical attendance for the care and 
treatment of the condition or disease process that contributed to 
the death.
	(b)  The attending physician shall complete the medical 
certification not later than five days after receiving the death 
certificate.
	(c)  An associate physician, the chief medical officer of the 
institution where the death occurred, or the physician who 
performed an autopsy on the decedent may complete the medical 
certification if:
		(1)  the attending physician is unavailable;                                  
		(2)  the attending physician approves;  and                                   
		(3)  the person completing the medical certification 
has access to the medical history of the case and the death is due to 
natural causes.
	(d)  If a death or fetal death occurs without medical 
attendance or is otherwise subject to Chapter 49, Code of Criminal 
Procedure, the person required to file the death or fetal death 
certificate shall notify the appropriate authority of the death.
	(e)  A person conducting an inquest required by Chapter 49, 
Code of Criminal Procedure, shall:
		(1)  complete the medical certification not later than 
five days after receiving the death or fetal death certificate;  and
		(2)  state on the medical certification the disease 
that caused the death or, if the death was from external causes, the 
means of death and whether the death was probably accidental, 
suicidal, or homicidal, and any other information required by the 
state registrar to properly classify the death.
	(f)  If the identity of the decedent is unknown, the person 
conducting the inquest shall obtain and forward to the Department 
of Public Safety:
		(1)  the decedent's fingerprints;                                             
		(2)  information concerning the decedent's hair color, 
eye color, height, weight, deformities, and tattoo marks;  and
		(3)  other facts required for assistance in identifying 
the decedent.       
	(g)  If the medical certification cannot be completed in a 
timely manner, the person required to complete the medical 
certification shall give the funeral director or the person acting 
as funeral director notice of the reason for the delay.  Final 
disposition of the body may not be made unless specifically 
authorized by the person responsible for completing the medical 
certification.
	(h)  The person completing the medical certification shall 
attest to its validity either by signature or by an electronic 
process approved by the state registrar.
	(i)  On receipt of autopsy results or other information that 
would change the information in the medical certification on the 
death certificate, the appropriate certifier shall immediately 
report the change in a manner prescribed by the department to amend 
the death certificate. 
	(j)  The death certificate of a decedent who was an inmate of 
the Texas Department of Criminal Justice at the time of death and 
who was lawfully executed shall classify the manner of death as 
death caused by judicially ordered execution.

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.  Amended 
by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1425, § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1997;  Acts 
2005, 79th Leg., ch. 285, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2005.


	§ 193.006. INFORMATION RELATING TO VETERANS.  (a) This 
section applies to the death certificate of a person who:
		(1)  served in a war, campaign, or expedition of the 
United States, the Confederate States of America, or the Republic 
of Texas; 
		(2)  was the wife or widow of a person who served in a 
war, campaign, or expedition of the United States, the Confederate 
States of America, or the Republic of Texas;  or
		(3)  at the time of death was in the service of the 
United States.          
	(b)  The funeral director or the person in charge of the 
disposition of the body shall supply on the reverse side of the 
death certificate:
		(1)  the organization in which service was rendered;                          
		(2)  the serial number on the discharge papers or the 
adjusted service certificate;  and
		(3)  the name and mailing address of the decedent's next 
of kin or next friend.
	(c)  When the death certificate is filed locally, the local 
registrar shall immediately notify the nearest congressionally 
chartered veteran organizations.
	(d)  When the death certificate is filed with the bureau of 
vital statistics, the state registrar shall notify the Texas 
Veterans Commission.

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.  Amended 
by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 260, § 3, eff. Sept. 1, 1991.


	§ 193.007. DELAYED REGISTRATION OF DEATH.  (a) A death 
that occurred more than 10 days but less than one year before the 
date of an application for registration of death may be recorded on 
a death certificate and submitted for filing with the local 
registrar of the registration district in which the death occurred.
	(b)  To file a record of a death that occurred in this state 
but was not registered within one year of the date of death, a 
person shall submit a record of the death to the county probate 
court in the county in which the death occurred.
	(c)  The bureau of vital statistics shall furnish a form for 
filing records under this section.  Records submitted under this 
section must be on the form furnished by the bureau.  The state 
registrar may accept a certificate that is verified as provided by 
this section.
	(d)  The certificate must be supported by the affidavit of:                    
		(1)  the physician last in attendance on the decedent 
or the funeral director who buried the body;  or
		(2)  if the affidavit of the physician or funeral 
director cannot be obtained:
			(A)  any person who was acquainted with the facts 
surrounding the death when the death occurred;  and
			(B)  another person who was acquainted with the 
facts surrounding the death but who is not related to the decedent 
by consanguinity or affinity, as determined under Chapter 573, 
Government Code.
	(e)  For each application under this section, the court shall 
collect a $1 fee.  The court retains 50 cents of the fee and the 
remaining 50 cents is allocated to the clerk of the court for 
recording the certificate.
	(f)  Not later than the seventh day after the date on which a 
certificate is accepted and ordered filed by a court under this 
section, the clerk of the court shall forward to the bureau of vital 
statistics:
		(1)  the certificate;  and                                                    
		(2)  an order from the court that the state registrar 
accept the certificate.

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.  Amended 
by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 561, § 29, eff. Aug. 26, 1991;  Acts 
1995, 74th Leg., ch. 76, § 5.95(27), eff. Sept. 1, 1995;  Acts 
1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1425, § 3, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.


	§ 193.008. BURIAL-TRANSIT PERMIT.  (a) A burial-transit 
permit issued under the law and rules of a place outside of this 
state in which a death or fetal death occurred authorizes the 
transportation of the body in this state.  A cemetery or crematory 
shall accept the permit as authorization for burial, cremation, or 
other disposal of the body in this state.
	(b)  The department shall prescribe the form and contents of 
the burial-transit permit.

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.                    


	§ 193.009. BURIAL RECORDS.  (a) The person in charge of 
premises on which interments are made shall keep a record of the 
bodies interred or otherwise disposed of on the premises.
	(b)  The records must include for each decedent:                               
		(1)  the decedent's name;                                                     
		(2)  the place of death;                                                      
		(3)  the date of interment or disposal;                                       
		(4)  the name and address of the funeral director;  and                       
		(5)  any other information required by the state 
registrar.                 
	(c)  The records are open to official inspection at all 
times.               

Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 678, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989.                    


	§ 193.010. CERTIFICATE OF DEATH BY CATASTROPHE.  (a) In 
this section, "catastrophe" means the occurrence of a substantial 
force that causes widespread or severe damage, injury, or loss of 
life or property and from which it is not reasonable to assume that 
a person could survive, including:
		(1)  flood, earthquake, tornado, or other natural 
disaster;                 
		(2)  explosion, fire, or destruction of a building;                           
		(3)  the crash of a motor vehicle, train, or airplane 
involving more than one person;  or
		(4)  the overtaking of more than one person by fire, 
water, earth, or other substance.
	(b)  A local registrar shall issue and file a certificate of 
death by catastrophe for a person if:
		(1)  an affidavit is submitted to the registrar stating 
that:               
			(A)  the person was last reasonably believed to be 
at the scene of a catastrophe;
			(B)  at least 10 days have passed since the day of 
the catastrophe;        
			(C)  a diligent search has been made by a 
governmental authority and the authority has concluded the search 
for the person;
			(D)  the catastrophe was not intentionally caused 
by the person;  and      
			(E)  the affiant:                                                            
				(i)  does not know whether the person is 
alive or dead;                   
				(ii)  has not received any information about 
the person's status since the catastrophe and, barring the person's 
death, would have received information about the person's status;
				(iii)  is not aware of any custody or 
guardianship issues involving the person, if the person is a minor 
or a person for whom a guardian has been appointed;  and
				(iv)  is not aware of any reasonable motive 
for the person to disappear or for another person to abduct the 
person;  and
		(2)  a written statement signed by an agent of the 
governmental authority that conducts a search under Subdivision 
(1)(C) is submitted to the registrar stating that the governmental 
authority conducted and concluded a search for the person.
	(c)  The department may issue a certificate of death by 
catastrophe for a minor or a person for whom a guardian has been 
appointed who is the subject of a custody or guardianship dispute 
only if all parties to the dispute submit an affidavit under 
Subsection (b).
	(d)  An insurer shall accept as proof of death of an insured a 
certificate of death by catastrophe issued under this section.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1098, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.