Gov. Brad Little signs bill creating statewide next-of-kin database for deceased loved ones
Published at
IDAHO FALLS – A new law will help Idaho coroners notify families faster when a loved one dies.
SB 1365 was signed into law by Gov. Brad Little on March 20 after passing the Senate and the House without any opposition.
The law establishes a voluntary next-of-kin database within the Idaho Transportation Department’s Department of Motor Vehicles. As people renew their driver’s licenses, they have the option to provide or update their next-of-kin.
It would only be accessible to coroners and law enforcement to notify a family of an injury, death, or other emergency situation. The information cannot be used for any other purpose.
RELATED | Proposed bill aims to establish next-of-kin database for deceased loved ones
Bannock County Coroner Torey Danner co-sponsored the bill with Sen. Mark Harris, R-Soda Springs. He’s proud to see this legislation become law.
“It’s one step closer to creating better tools and resources so that we can provide better service,” Danner tells EastIdahoNews.com.
The database will be implemented next year and will have a one-time cost of $24,000, which will be included in ITD’s budget.
Danner got the idea for this bill last year after he’d spent three days tracking down the family of a woman who died in Chubbuck. It turned out her father also lived in Chubbuck but his contact information was outdated. It took him another four days to find current contact information for him.
“As a parent, I couldn’t fathom what it would be like to lose a child and then not be told or notified until days after,” Danner told us earlier this month.
This is something that happens more often than people realize, he says, but this particular situation was one of the longest periods its ever taken him to track down contact information for a family member.
Danner spoke with Harris about this issue last year at a meeting for county officials. Harris says this bill will be helpful in addressing an ongoing challenge.
“As our world is changing and phone books are getting thinner and more people are using cell phones, it’s getting more difficult to locate people. This legislation is designed to help with this challenge,” Harris says in a news release.
Danner says this “much-needed database” will provide “a greater ability to contact families in a timely and efficient manner” and he’s looking forward to seeing its impact across the state.