Though the cost of living has dropped in the past year, the House State Affairs Committee wants to increase the cost of dying in Idaho.
Committee members voted to increase the cost to purchase a death certificate by $1 Tuesday. The fee for buying a certificate is $13, which would increase to $14 if the legislation is passed by the full House and Senate.
Idaho’s fee is level with many surrounding states. Utah’s fee for one copy is $16, while Montana’s is lower than Idaho’s at $12. Oregon and Washington have the highest rates in the region, charging $20 for the first copy.
The move could generate as much as $50,000 a year, which would pooled into an account specifically designated to find ongoing education for county coroners. One of the bill’s co-sponsors, Sen. Robert Geddes, R-Soda Springs, said that because county coroners face an ever-increasing and complex job description, there should be a mechanism in place to pay for conferences and trainings that coroners should attend.
Not everyone in attendance was thrilled with the potential fee increase. James Aydelotte, representing the Center for Vital Statistics, the department that actually issues death certificates, said that though the fee may increase, families may not receive what they pay for. Aydelotte noted that many hospital physicians declare cause of death, which is a primary function of a coroner, though the doctors wouldn’t receive additional taxpayer-funded training under the bill. He also objected to a statewide pool of funds, saying that families in counties will have no guarantees that their respective coroners will receive a fair share of the training funds.
The measure now moves to the full House for a vote. The measure is co-sponsored by Rep. Marc Gibbs, R-Grace.
(Note: Rep. Gibbs had pitched another bill to protect out-of-state emergency responders from litigation in certain instances. Read about that bill here.)
I can see the headline coming…
“Idaho Legislators pass death tax.”
Let’s hope the $1,000 or so per Coroner, per year, is well spent.
Yeah, I agree. I thought of a bunch of creative headlines for this article, but unfortunately I went with the safe option.
[...] (Note: The invasive species sticker program fee hike wasn’t the only effort by lawmakers to fund state programs by charging more for certain services. The House State Affairs committee voted Tuesday to raise fees on death certificates; read about it here.) [...]