This March 18th press release from It's Time, Maryland! came to us via AEGIS Internet News. You can reach Jessica Xavier, spokesperson of It's Time, Maryland! atTheXGrrrl@aol.com.

Hearings Held for a Law to Force the State to
Issue New Certificates to Post-Op Transsexuals

Annapolis, Maryland - Hearings were held yesterday in the Maryland House of Delegates for a bill that would permit post-operative transsexual men and women to obtain new, unadulterated birth certificates after their sex reassignment surgeries. It's Time, Maryland! a state chapter of the national Transgender political organization It's Time, America! was the lead group behind this bill. Recognition of change of sex has long been permitted in Maryland, but the state's methodology for doing so has raised some serious concerns for transsexuals born in the Free State.

House Bill 1304, sponsored by Delegate Sharon Grosfeld (D, Kensington and Silver Spring) would modify sections of the state code of Maryland to require the state's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) to issue new, unadulterated birth certificates to post-operative transsexuals. Under existing law, when such requests are received by the DHMH's Bureau of Vital Statistics, it is their policy to either "white" out or scratch out the original name and sex, adding the new name and correct sex beside them on the proof copy of the birth certificate.

DHMH's policies result in an obviously adulterated birth certificate that easily creates suspicion of fraud, and can get the bearer arrested and charged under Maryland law for either misdemeanor misapplication or felony forgery. In 1996, a transsexual woman was arrested and charged with felony forgery for presenting an adulterated birth certificate to the Gaithersburg MVA Office for a driver's license.

Three transsexual women (including two who intend to do surgery in the near future) offered testimony showing other potentially serious ramifications for transsexual people who present adulterated birth certificates. Under the Immigration and Naturalization Service's I-9 Regulations, a birth certificate is one of the most commonly requested forms of identification for proof of citizenship - now a requirement to legally be employed in this country. Since the documentation of many transsexual people does not reflect their current gender status, presentation of an adulterated birth certificate can result in denial of employment.

Birth certificates also are commonly used to obtain other forms of identification. Jessica Xavier, the Spokesperson of It's Time, Maryland! had an application for a US passport rejected because she could not submit a copy of her birth certificate. According to Xavier, her petition for a new birth certificate was rejected by the Circuit Court of Rockville, the reason given being "no basis in law for this request." In her testimony, she said "I spent the next fifteen months in court, attempting to get a Writ of Mandamus processed, which was the only way to get a new unadulterated copy of my birth certificate issued to me." Mark Scurti, a Baltimore attorney who has represented many transsexuals, testified that a Writ of Mandamus is "an extreme request which should only be used in rare situations" and that a simple petition with the appropriate affidavits would afford a much more efficient means, lessening the burden on an already clogged court system.

If HB 1304 is passed, post-operative transsexuals would simply request a new birth certificate through a petition similar to their name change, attaching their surgeon's affidavit attesting to their change of sex. Their original birth certificate would be permanently sealed and kept by the state.

This is the third consecutive year this bill has been brought before the House Environmental Matters Committee, chaired by Ronald Guns (D, Kent and Queen Anne's Counties). An earlier request by Delegate Grosfeld to obtain an administrative change to this policy was turned down by DHMH chief Dr. Martin Wasserman.

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