HOUSE BILL No. 5115


     September 30, 1997, Introduced by Rep. Anthony and referred to the Committee on Senior Citizens and Veterans Affairs.


        A bill to amend 1867 PA 83, entitled

   "An act to authorize and require county clerks to record the dis-
   charges of members of the armed forces of the United States; and
   to limit the disclosure of those discharge records,"

   by amending section 2 (MCL 35.32).

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 1         Sec. 2.  (1) A county clerk shall enter  at large,  upon the

 2    record book  ,  all  soldiers', sailors', marines', nurses', 

 3    DISCHARGES OF SOLDIERS, SAILORS, MARINES, NURSES, and members of

 4    women's  auxiliaries' discharges  AUXILIARIES that may be

 5    presented to the clerk for  record, and  RECORDING.  THE COUNTY

 6    CLERK SHALL fully index  them, arranging  THE RECORDED INFORMA-

 7    TION, AND ARRANGE the names of  the  soldiers, sailors, marines,

 8    nurses, and members of women's auxiliaries  ,  alphabetically.

 9    The military service discharge  records  RECORD of a person




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 1     shall be  IS confidential and may be viewed or copied only  by

 2     the  PURSUANT TO SUBSECTION (2).

 3         (2) EACH COUNTY CLERK MAY APPOINT 1 OR MORE CLERK ADVOCATES

 4    WHO SHALL SERVE WITHOUT COMPENSATION AND WHO MAY DO ANY OF THE

 5    FOLLOWING:

 6         (A) REVIEW A RECORD DESCRIBED IN SUBSECTION (1) THAT IS LESS

 7    THAN 70 YEARS OLD AND MAKE AVAILABLE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC ONLY

 8    THE NAME, RANK, UNIT OF MILITARY SERVICE, DATES OF MILITARY SERV-

 9    ICE, AND MEDALS AND AWARDS CONFERRED UPON EACH INDIVIDUAL IDENTI-

10    FIED IN THAT RECORD.

11         (B) MAKE AVAILABLE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC INFORMATION IN A

12    RECORD DESCRIBED IN SUBSECTION (1) THAT IS NOT LESS THAN 70 YEARS

13    OLD.

14         (C) PURSUANT TO THE RECORDS MEDIA ACT, 1992 PA 116, MCL

15    24.401 TO 24.403, PROVIDE FOR THE VIEWING OR REPRODUCTION OF A

16    MILITARY SERVICE DISCHARGE RECORD OF A VETERAN BY ANY OF THE

17    FOLLOWING:

18         (i) THE veteran.  , a 

19         (ii) A person with the veteran's permission.  , or the 

20         (iii) THE surviving heirs of  a  THE veteran.

21         (iv) A veteran's service officer,  or  the Michigan veterans

22    trust fund, or a person employed by the county department of

23    veterans' affairs who provides counseling for veterans,  shall be

24     given a copy of the service discharge record when  IF access to

25     those records  THAT RECORD is necessary to aid  a  THE veteran,

26    or the surviving spouse or a dependent of  a  THE veteran in

27    applying for benefits available to  a  THE veteran.



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 1         (D) CHARGE A PERSON, OTHER THAN A VETERAN OR A MEMBER OF THE

 2    VETERAN'S FAMILY, THE ACTUAL COSTS OF PRODUCING INFORMATION FROM

 3    A RECORD REQUESTED BY THE PERSON.

 4         (3) Counties in which the clerk is not on a salary basis

 5    shall compensate the clerk for  this service  THE RECORDING OF A

 6    DISCHARGE UNDER SUBSECTION (1) at a rate of not less than 50

 7    cents nor more than $1.00, as directed by the county board of

 8    commissioners, for each discharge recorded.  The clerk shall make

 9    a sworn statement at the end of every 3 months in each calendar

10    year as to the number of discharges recorded, and file  the same 

11    THAT STATEMENT with the county treasurer.

12         (4) AS USED IN THIS SECTION, "70 YEARS OLD" MEANS 70 YEARS

13    FROM THE DATE OF THE FIRST DISCHARGE FROM MILITARY SERVICE OF THE

14    INDIVIDUAL IDENTIFIED IN THE RECORD DESCRIBED IN SUBSECTION (1).





























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