Stirpes, Volume 25, Number 2, June 1985 Page: 54
53-110 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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EDITOR'S 0TEBOOK
On March 15th, I was notified that a bill would be presented to the Texas
Legislature that would severly limit the used of the Texas vital records.
The excuse for the bill is that illegal aliens have used them to acquire
a birth certificate that would enable them to receive welfare and/or social
security benefits. This may be so, but it will also make these records
unavailable to researchers, thus making our research more difficult. I
believe that there are other ways to stop the misuse of our records and
benefits than by closing the records to researchers or other legitimate users.
The numbers of the bills are as follows:
Senate Bill #592 "Illegal Alien Bill" is out of committee and is ready
for a vote on the floor.
House Bill #666, sponsored by Don Lee, Dist. 38, Harligen was referred to
a sub-committee on 11 MAR 1985 but nothing more reported on it. Sub-
committee members are: Richard A. Smith, Dist. 14, Bryan, Chairman
Nicolas J. Perez, Dist. 74, El Paso
John Gavin, Dist. 81, Wichita Falls
You may call 1-800-252-9693 and check on the status of these bills or if
you are in Austin the number to call is 475-3026.
If you believe these bills should not pass the Legislature, contact your
senator and representative immediately and let them know how you feel. When
genealogists have joined together, we have accomplished a great deal. I think
that we should preserve our right to use our public records or one by one they
may be closed to us.
If you want a copy of this bill, send a SASE to the Editor: Loretta E.
Burns, 1804 Zapp Lane, Pasadena, TX 77502 and I will send a copy to you.
After reading the bill, you will better understand what the results will be if
it is passed.
LORETTA ELLIOTT BURNS
When the Society was notified about the above House Bill back in March, we
followed up with letters to the TSGS Board of Directors which included a
copy of the bill along with the names and addresses of our Texas legislators.
Most of the Board members had an opportunity to then proceed to their local
organizations with the information - and that 800# has had a lot of calls!
As of the term's end on May 27, both bills died - no action taken. In Texas,our legislature will not convene again until January 8, 1987 - so we are
safe for a while. This does not mean we should just forget it, but to let
our individual representatives know that we, as researchers, are concerned
and want assurance that we will be able to continue to use our vital records.
TWB 5/28/85
54STIRPES XXV
JUNE 1985
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Texas State Genealogical Society. Stirpes, Volume 25, Number 2, June 1985, periodical, June 1985; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth149951/m1/6/?rotate=90: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Genealogical Society.