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Dare County supports local issuance of birth certificates for adoptees, opposes bill to let commissioners remove elected registers of deeds
Summary
The board voted to back Senate Bill 248 allowing county registers of deeds to issue certified birth certificates to adopted people and unanimously approved a resolution opposing Senate Bill 711, which would require counties to adopt codes of ethics and give commissioners removal authority for registered deeds.
Dare County commissioners voted to support Senate Bill 248, which would let county registers of deeds issue certified birth certificates to people who have been adopted. Cheryl, speaking to the board, said local issuance would lower the fee and shorten wait times: current state processing can cost over $50 and take up to 90 days, while local issuance under the bill would cost $10 and could be issued immediately.
The board acted separately on Senate Bill 711, approving a resolution that opposes the bill and urges the General Assembly to reject it. Commissioners and staff argued SB 711 would give county managers and boards broad and subjective discretion to determine whether an elected register of deeds violated a locally adopted code and then remove that official, which they said lacks due‑process protections and risks politicizing an elected office. "If a violation of the county's code is alleged…the county manager would give him the broad discretion to determine whether a violation has occurred," the resolution reads; the board concluded that the existing judicial removal processes are a more appropriate avenue for addressing misconduct.
During the SB 711 discussion one commissioner recused himself from the debate and vote; the remaining members approved the resolution opposing the bill by unanimous voice vote. The board directed staff to forward the resolution to the county’s state legislators, the North Carolina Association of Registers of Deeds, the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners and the governor.
