A local Jamestown resident asked City Council members to consider reducing the birth certificate fee from $30 to $10 in order to make it easier and cheaper for people to access their birth certificate for various purposes. Pictured is a local resident addressing the City Council during Monday’s work session meeting. P-J photo by Timothy Frudd

During the public comments portion of a recent City Council work session meeting, a local resident presented concerns regarding the fee for an individual to acquire a birth certificate in Jamestown. The local resident said that the city’s fee, which is $30, is three times as high as places such as Dunkirk, Batavia, Binghamton and Niagara Falls.

“The $30 fee hurts a lot of people,” she said. “We need birth certificates for things like real ID coming up. We need a birth certificate for things like the New York state driver’s license. We need the birth certificate for benefits for jobs and transfer apartments. We have a lot of youth who interested working and they cannot do so because they need to find money to get a birth certificate.”

While the local resident requested that the City Council reduce the fee from $30 to $10 if possible, she also suggested that the city could approve a one-year pilot study with the fee reduction to “see what the implications are” rather than implementing it on a permanent basis.

City Council President Anthony Dolce, R-Ward II, explained that the City Council would look into the comparisons between the cost of acquiring a birth certificate in Jamestown and surrounding municipalities, as well as the cost of the fees and other pertinent information.

City Councilwoman Marie Carrubba, D-Ward IV, recalled that the city increased the cost for requesting a birth certificate a few years back in order to align the cost with the fee the state charges for a birth certificate. Jennifer Williams, city clerk, added that the city approved the fee increase in 2020 and the increase was effected in 2021.

“At that point, I think it was determined that we were low, but I do know Batavia is $10, but it was in line with the state,” Carrubba said. “We had to request that because there were so many complications and trying to get those records, given all the manpower to get those records. It was done, and we did have a change, but it was we had to request it. It had been, I think, very low for many years, but it was decided that we needed to recover what the state was allowing and what the state was charging.”

Mayor Eddie Sundquist explained that municipalities are still required to charge a $10 fee unless the state legislature gives a municipality special permission to increase the price of the fee. He added that Jamestown is one of multiple communities that have increased the birth certificate fee as a result of the state increasing its fee “tremendously.”

“I know Karin has been in my office having conversations in the work that she does, and I think there might be some request for various programs that may want to reduce that fee,” he said. “For example, those coming back in the community on the reentry program. There’s also been some discussion on those that are part of domestic violence incidents as well.”

City Councilman William Reynolds, R-Ward V, asked if the city administration had a record of the annual average for birth certificate requests. Williams said she could provide City Council members with an exact number, adding that the annual number of requests is quite high.

Another question asked by a different member of the community was whether an individual is required to show up in-person to obtain a copy of their birth certificate.

“You don’t have to,” Williams said. “It’s quicker if you can because you get it the same day. but people from out of the area will request through writing through email.”

Prior to the conclusion of public comments, Dolce reiterated that the City Council will “have a discussion” on the matter in the future.