(a) In order to promote and maintain uniformity of the system of vital statistics the forms of the certificates, reports and other returns required by the act or by regulations adopted hereunder, shall include as a minimum the items recommended by the federal agency responsible for national vital statistics subject to approval of and modification by the department of health. Social security numbers, if available, will be required on death certificates.
(b) Each certificate, report and form required to be filed under this act shall have entered upon its face the date of registration duly attested.
(a) A certificate of birth for each live birth which occurs in this state shall be filed with the local registrar of the district in which the birth occurs within ten (10) days after such birth and shall be registered by the registrar if it has been completed in accordance with this section. When a birth occurs on a moving conveyance a birth certificate shall be filed in the district in which the child was first removed from the conveyance.
(b) When a birth occurs in an institution, or en route thereto, the person in charge of the institution or a designated representative shall obtain the personal data, prepare the certificate, secure the signatures required by the certificate and file it with the local registrar. The person in attendance will certify to the facts of the birth and provide the medical information required by the certificate within seven (7) days after birth. If the attendant has not signed the certificate within seven (7) days of the date of the birth, the person in charge of the institution or a designated representative shall complete and sign the certificate.
(c) When a birth occurs outside an institution, the certificate shall be prepared and filed by one (1) of the following in the indicated order of priority:
(i) The physician in attendance at or immediately after the birth, or in the absence of such a person;
(ii) Any other person in attendance at or immediately after the birth; or
(iii) The father, the mother, or in the absence of the father and the inability of the mother, the person in charge of the premises where the birth occurred.
(d) For purposes of birth registration, unless a court of competent jurisdiction orders otherwise at any time or except as provided in subsection (e) of this section, the woman who gives birth to the child shall be deemed the mother.
(e) Upon the birth of a child under a gestational agreement, the intended parents of the child born under the gestational agreement shall be deemed to be the mother and father of the child, including for purposes of birth registration and the birth certificate, upon satisfying the following conditions:
(i) Submission of a complete application by the intended parents as the state office of vital records services prescribes; and
(ii) Verification by the state office of vital records services that the gestational agreement complies with the requirements of W.S. 35-1-401(a)(xiv).
(a) If the mother was married either at the time of conception or birth of child, or between conception and birth, the name of the husband shall be entered on the certificate as the father of the child, unless:
(i) Paternity has been determined otherwise by a court of competent jurisdiction; or
(ii) The husband signs an affidavit denying that he is the father and the mother and the person to be named as the father sign an affidavit of paternity under this section. Affidavits may be joint or individual or a combination thereof, and each signature shall be individually notarized. The name of the person signing the affidavit of paternity shall be entered as the father on the certificate of birth.
(b) If the mother was not married either at the time of conception or birth of child, or between conception and birth, the name of the father shall not be entered on the certificate of birth without an affidavit of paternity signed by the mother and the person to be named as father, unless a determination of the paternity has been made by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(c) In any case in which paternity of a child is determined by a court of competent jurisdiction, the name of the father and surname of the child shall be entered on the certificate of birth in accordance with the finding and order of the court.
(d) If the father is not named on the certificate of birth, no other information about the father shall be entered on the certificate.
35-1-412. Report required of person assuming custody of
foundlings; information to be shown; report to constitute birth certificate; subsequent identification and certificate.
(a) Whoever assumes the custody of a living child of unknown parentage shall report within seven (7) days on a form to be approved by the state registrar, to the local registrar of the registration district in which custody is assumed, the following information:
(i) Date of finding or assumption of custody;
(ii) Place of finding or assumption of custody;
(iii) Sex;
(iv) Race;
(v) Approximate age;
(vi) Name and address of the person or institution with whom the child has been placed for care, if any;
(vii) Name given to the child by the finder or custodian; and
(viii) Other data required by the state registrar.
(b) The place where the child was found, or custody has been assumed shall be known as the place of birth, and the date of birth shall be determined by approximation. The foundling report shall constitute the certificate of birth for such foundling child and the provisions of this act relating to certificates of birth shall apply in the same manner and with the same effect to such report. If a foundling child shall later be identified and a regular certificate of birth be found or obtained, any report registered under this section shall be sealed and placed in a special file and may be opened only upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction or as provided by regulation.
(a) When the birth of a person born in this state has not been registered, a certificate may be filed in accordance with the regulations of vital records services. The certificate shall be registered subject to such evidentiary requirements as vital records services shall prescribe to substantiate the alleged facts of birth. Certificates of birth registered one (1) year or more after the date of occurrence shall be marked "Delayed" and show on their face the date of the delayed registration. A summary statement of the evidence submitted in support of the delayed registration shall be endorsed on the certificate. Evidence affecting delayed certificates should be microfilmed and then returned to the registrant.
(b) When an applicant does not submit the minimum documents required in the regulations for delayed registration, or when the state registrar of vital records finds reason to question the validity or adequacy of the documentary evidence, the state registrar of vital records shall not register the delayed certificate and shall advise the applicant of the reasons for this action. Applications for delayed certificates which have not been completed within one (1) year from the date of application may be dismissed at the discretion of the state registrar. Upon dismissal the state registrar shall advise the applicant of his decision and all documents submitted in support of such registration shall be returned to the applicant.
35-1-414. Delayed registration of death and marriage.
When a death or marriage occurring in this state has not been registered, a certificate may be filed in accordance with regulations of the division of health and medical services. The certificate shall be registered subject to such evidentiary requirements as the division of health and medical services shall by regulation prescribe to substantiate the alleged facts of death or marriage. Certificates of death and marriage registered one (1) year or more after the date of occurrence shall be marked "Delayed" and shall show on their face the date of the delayed registration.
35-1-415. Judicial procedure to establish facts of birth.
(a) If a delayed certificate of birth is rejected under the provisions of this act, a petition may be filed with a court of competent jurisdiction for an order establishing a record of the date and place of the birth and the parentage of the person whose birth is to be registered. The petition shall be made on a form prescribed and furnished by the state registrar of vital records and shall allege:
(i) The person for whom a delayed certificate of birth is sought was born in this state;
(ii) No record of birth of such person can be found in the office of the state or local custodian of birth records;
(iii) Diligent efforts by the petitioner have failed to obtain the evidence required in accordance with this act;
(iv) The state registrar of vital records has refused to register a delayed certificate of birth; and
(v) Such other allegations as may be required.
(b) The petition shall be accompanied by a statement of the registration official made in accordance with this act and all documentary evidence which was submitted to the registration official in support of registration. The petition shall be sworn to by the petitioner.
(c) The court shall fix a time and place for hearing the petition and shall give the registration official who refused to register the petitioner's delayed certificate of birth appropriate notice of the hearing. Such official, or his authorized representative, may appear and testify in the proceeding.
(d) If the court from the evidence presented finds that the person for whom a delayed certificate of birth is sought was born in this state, it shall make findings as to the place and date of birth, parentage and such other findings as the case may require, and shall issue an order on a form prescribed and furnished by the state registrar of vital records to establish a record of birth. This order shall include the birth data to be registered, a description of the evidence presented in the manner prescribed by this act, and the date of the court's action.
(e) The clerks of courts of competent jurisdiction shall forward a certified copy of the order to the state registrar of vital records not later than the tenth day of the calendar month following the month in which it was entered. The order shall be registered by the state registrar of vital records and shall constitute the record of birth, from which copies may be issued in accordance with this act.
(a) For each adoption of a child born in this state that is decreed by any court in this state, the court shall require the preparation of a report of adoption on a form prescribed and furnished by the state registrar of vital records. The report shall include such facts as are necessary to locate and identify the certificate of birth of the person adopted, provide information necessary to establish new certificate of birth of the person adopted, and shall identify the order of adoption and be certified by the clerk of the court. The report of adoption as well as a certified copy of adoption decree shall be furnished to the state registrar as specified in subsection (c) of this section.
(b) Whenever an adoption decree is amended or annulled, the clerk of the court shall prepare a report thereof which shall include such facts as are necessary to identify the original adoption report and the facts amended in the adoption decree as necessary to properly amend the birth record. The report of the amended or annulled adoption decree shall be furnished to the state registrar as specified in subsection (c) of this section.
(c) Not later than the fifth day of each calendar month the clerk of court shall forward to the state registrar of vital records the report of adoption, records of decrees of adoption, and any annulment or amendment thereof entered in the preceding month together with such related reports as the state registrar shall require.
(d) When the state registrar receives a record of adoption, or annulment, or amendment thereof, from a court for a person born outside this state, the record shall be forwarded to the appropriate registration authority in the state of birth. For an adoption of a child born in a foreign country, the record of adoption shall be forwarded to the U.S. immigration and naturalization service, U.S. department of justice, or such other office as the federal government may designate.
35-1-417. New certificate of birth following adoption;
court determination of paternity; and paternity acknowledgment.
(a) The state registrar of vital records shall establish a new certificate of birth for a person born in this state when he receives the following:
(i) An adoption report from the courts of this state, the several states of the United States or a foreign country, and a certified copy of the decree of adoption together with the information necessary to identify the original certificate of birth and to establish a new certificate of birth; except that a new certificate of birth shall not be established unless so requested by the court decreeing the adoption, the adoptive parents or the adopted person;
(ii) A request that a new certificate be established and evidence as required by regulation proving that a court of competent jurisdiction has determined the paternity of the person, or that both parents have acknowledged the paternity of such person.
(b) When a new certificate of birth is established, the actual city and county and date of birth shall be shown. It shall be substituted for the original certificate of birth. If a new certificate of birth is issued under this section, and in the case of adoptions, the original certificate of birth and evidence of adoption shall not be subject to inspection except upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(c) Upon receipt of a decree of annulment of adoption, the original certificate of birth shall be restored to its place in the file and the new certificate and evidence shall not be subject to inspection except upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(d) Repealed By Laws 2003, Ch. 93, § 3.
(e) The state registrar of vital records shall establish a new certificate of birth, on a form he prescribes, for a person born in a foreign country upon receipt of a certified copy of the decree of adoption entered pursuant to W.S. 1-22-111(a)(iii) and a request for a new certificate by the court decreeing the adoption, the adoptive parents or the adopted person.
(f) If no certificate of birth is on file for the person for whom a new certificate is to be established under this section, a delayed certificate of birth shall be filed with the state registrar of vital records as provided by this act, before a new certificate of birth is established.
(g) Repealed By Laws 2003, Ch. 93, § 3.
(a) A death certificate for each death which occurs in this state shall be filed with the local registrar of the registration district in which the death occurred within three (3) days after the death and prior to removal of the body from the state and shall be registered by such registrar if it has been completed and filed in accordance with this section, provided:
(i) That if the place of death is unknown, a death certificate shall be filed in the registration district in which a dead body is found within three (3) days after such occurrence; and
(ii) If the death occurs in a moving conveyance, a death certificate shall be filed in the registration district in which the dead body is first removed from such conveyance.
(b) The funeral director or person acting as such who first assumes custody of a dead body shall file the death certificate. He shall obtain the personal data from the next of kin or the best qualified person or source available. He shall obtain the medical certification of cause of death from the person responsible therefor.
(c) The medical certification shall be completed and signed within a reasonable time after death by the primary health care provider in charge of the patient's care for the illness or condition which resulted in death, except when inquiry is required by the postmortem examination. If the death occurred without medical attendance or if the primary health care provider last in attendance refuses or for any reason fails to sign the certificate immediately, the funeral director or person acting as funeral director shall notify the appropriate local registrar. In that event the local registrar shall inform the local health officer and refer the case to him for immediate investigation and certification of cause of death prior to issuing a permit for burial, cremation or other disposition of the body. If the circumstances of the case suggest that the death was caused by other than natural causes, the local registrar shall refer the case to the coroner for investigation and certification. The coroner shall examine the body and consider the history of the case, and obtain the assistance and advice of a competent physician who will assist the coroner in determining the cause of death by examination of the body, autopsy, inquest or other procedure determined necessary. The nonmedical coroner shall not diagnose the cause of death without the assistance and advice of a competent physician, advanced practice registered nurse or physician assistant. The coroner or local health officer shall complete and sign the medical certification within a reasonable time after taking charge of the case.
(d) For purposes of this section, "primary health care provider" means as defined in W.S. 35-22-402(a)(xiv).
(a) A stillbirth certificate for each stillbirth which occurs in this state after gestation period of twenty (20) completed weeks or more shall be filed with the local registrar of the registration district in which the delivery occurred within three (3) days after the delivery and prior to removal of the stillbirth from the state. If the place of stillbirth is unknown, a stillbirth certificate shall be filed in the registration district in which a stillbirth was found within three (3) days after the occurrence. If a stillbirth occurs on a moving conveyance, a stillbirth certificate shall be filed in the registration district in which the stillbirth was first removed from the conveyance.
(b) The funeral director or person acting as such who first assumes custody of a stillbirth shall file the stillbirth certificate. In the absence of such a person, the physician or other person in attendance at or after the delivery shall file the stillbirth certificate.
(c) The medical certification shall be completed and signed within a reasonable time after delivery by the physician in attendance at or after delivery except when inquiry is required by the postmortem examination. When a stillbirth occurs without medical attendance to the mother at or after the delivery or when inquiry is required by the postmortem examination, the coroner shall investigate the cause of stillbirth and shall complete and sign the medical certification within a reasonable time after taking charge of the case.
(a) The funeral director or person acting as such who first assumes custody of a dead body or stillbirth shall obtain a burial-transit permit prior to final disposition or removal from the state of the body or stillbirth and within seventy-two (72) hours after death. The burial-transit permit shall be issued by the local registrar of the district where the certificate of death or stillbirth was filed in accordance with the requirements of this act. A burial-transit permit issued under the law of another state which accompanies a dead body or stillbirth brought into this state shall be authority for final disposition of the body or stillbirth in this state.
(b) No permit for burial, cremation, removal, or other disposition shall be issued by any local registrar until a certificate of death or stillbirth, as far as it can be completed under the circumstances of the case, has been filed with him, and until all the regulations of the administrator of the division of health and medical services in respect to the issuance of such permit have been complied with. No permit shall be issued which would be contrary to the sanitary laws of this state.
(c) A permit for disinterment and reinterment shall be required prior to disinterment of a dead body or stillbirth except as authorized by regulation or otherwise provided by law. The permit shall be issued by the local registrar to a licensed funeral director, embalmer, or other person acting as such, upon proper application.
(a) The department of health may, by regulation and upon such conditions as it may prescribe to assure compliance with the purposes of this act, provide for the extension of the periods prescribed in this act, for the filing of death certificates, stillbirth certificates, and for the obtaining of burial-transit permits in cases in which compliance with the applicable prescribed period would result in undue hardship.
(b) Regulations of the department of health may provide for the issuance of a burial-transit permit under this act, prior to the filing of a certificate of death or stillbirth upon conditions designed to assure compliance with the purposes of this act in cases in which compliance with the requirement that the certificate be filed prior to the issuance of the permit would result in undue hardship.
(a) A record of each marriage performed in the state shall be filed with the state registrar of vital records as provided in this section. The officer who issues the marriage license shall prepare the certificate on the form furnished by the state registrar of vital records upon the basis of information obtained from the parties to be married, as provided by W.S. 20-1-103 and signed by the bride and groom.
(b) Every person who performs a marriage shall certify the fact of marriage and file the record with the officer who issued the license within ten (10) days after the ceremony. This certificate shall be signed by the witnesses to the ceremony, one (1) copy of which shall be given to the parties so married. Every office issuing marriage licenses shall complete and forward to the state registrar of vital records on or before the tenth day of each calendar month the certificates of marriage filed with him during the preceding calendar month.
35-1-423. Court reports of divorce and annulment of marriage.
For each divorce and annulment of marriage granted by any court in this state a report shall be prepared and filed by the clerk of court with the state registrar of vital records. The information necessary to prepare the report shall be furnished, with the filing of the complaint for divorce, to the clerk of court on forms prescribed and furnished by the state registrar of vital records, and a hearing on the divorce complaint shall not be held until the foregoing information has been filed by the attorney for the plaintiff. On or before the tenth day of each month the clerk of court shall forward to the state registrar of vital records the report of each divorce and annulment granted during the preceding calendar month, and such related reports as may be required by regulations.
35-1-424. Correction and amendment of vital records.
(a) A certificate or record registered under this act may be amended only in accordance with this act and regulations thereunder adopted by the division of health and medical services to protect the integrity and accuracy of vital records. A certificate that is amended under this section shall be marked "Amended" except as provided in subsection (d) of this section. The date of amendment and a summary description of the evidence submitted in support of the amendment shall be endorsed on or made a part of the record.
(b) Vital records services shall prescribe by regulations the conditions under which additions or minor corrections shall be made to birth certificates within one (1) year after the date of birth without the certificate being considered as amended.
(c) Upon receipt of a certified copy of a court order changing the name of a person born in this state and upon request of such person or his parent, guardian, or legal representative, the state registrar of vital records shall amend the certificate to reflect the new name, by attaching an abstract of the court order.
(d) After one (1) year no correction shall be made on the face of the certificate.
To preserve original documents, the state registrar of vital records is authorized to prepare typewritten, photographic or other reproductions of original records and files in his office. Such reproductions when certified by him shall be accepted as the original record.
(a) To protect the integrity of vital records, to insure their proper use, and to insure the efficient and proper administration of the vital records system, it shall be unlawful for any person to permit inspection of, or to disclose information contained in vital records, or to copy or issue a copy of all or part of any such record except as authorized by regulations.
(b) The department of health may authorize the disclosure of data contained in vital records for research purposes.
(c) Information in vital records indicating that a birth occurred out of wedlock shall not be disclosed except as provided by regulations or upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction.
(d) The department of health is authorized to provide the necessary information in death records to the secretary of state for the maintenance of the voter registration system by removing names of voters who are deceased from the voter registration list. This disclosure of death records shall be conducted in accordance with the terms agreed upon by the secretary of state and the director of the department of health.
(a) Only the state registrar of vital records shall upon request issue a certified copy of any certificate or record in his custody or of a part thereof. Each copy issued shall show the date of registration and copies issued from records marked "Delayed", "Amended", or "Court Order" shall be similarly marked and show the effective date. A certified copy of a certificate or any part thereof, issued in accordance with this subsection shall be considered for all purposes the same as the original, and shall be prima facie evidence of the facts therein stated, except that the evidentiary value of a certificate or record filed more than six (6) months for birth, and one (1) year for death and marriage, after the event, or a record which has been amended, shall be determined by the judicial or administrative body or official before whom the certificate is offered as evidence.
(b) The federal agency responsible for national vital statistics may be furnished such copies as it may require for national statistics if the state is reimbursed for the cost of furnishing the data, and the data is not used for other than statistical purposes by the federal agency responsible for national vital statistics.
(c) Federal, state, local and other public or private agencies may, upon request, be furnished copies or data for statistical purposes upon such terms or conditions as may be prescribed by the department of health.
(d) No person shall prepare or issue any certificate which purports to be an original, certified copy or copy of a certificate of birth, death or stillbirth, except as authorized by this act or regulations adopted hereunder.
35-1-428. Fees for copies and searches; surcharges.
(a) The department of health shall in accordance with guidelines imposed upon boards and commissions under W.S. 33-1-201, prescribe reasonable fees for certified copies of certificates or records or for a search of the files or records when no copy is made. Fees collected shall be deposited into the general fund.
(b) In addition to fees imposed by department rule and regulation under subsection (a) of this section, the department shall collect a surcharge of five dollars ($5.00) for each copy of a certificate or record issued pursuant to this article and five dollars ($5.00) for each five (5) year period or portion thereof that a search of files or records is undertaken pursuant to this article. Revenues collected from the surcharge imposed under this subsection shall be deposited by the state treasurer in accordance with the following:
(i) For the period from July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2024, seventy-five percent (75%) into the Wyoming children's trust fund established under W.S. 14-8-106(a) and twenty-five percent (25%) into the Wyoming children's income account established under W.S. 14-8-106(b);
(ii) Beginning July 1, 2024, one hundred percent (100%) into the Wyoming children's trust fund established under W.S. 14-8-106(a).
(c) In addition to the fees imposed by department of health rules under subsection (a) of this section and the surcharges imposed under subsection (b) of this section, the department shall collect a surcharge of five dollars ($5.00) for each copy of a death certificate issued pursuant to this article. Revenues collected from the surcharge imposed under this subsection shall be deposited by the department in the indigent persons burial account, which is hereby created. All funds within the account shall be invested by the state treasurer and all investment earnings from the account shall be deposited in the account. Subject to legislative appropriation, the department of family services shall disperse one-half (1/2) of the funds within the account to counties that made a request for reimbursement under W.S. 18-3-504(c) or 19-14-101(a) and the remaining one-half (1/2) of funds shall be available to the department of family services for expenses incurred under W.S. 42-2-103(c). If a legislative appropriation is insufficient to reimburse all county reimbursement requests, the department of family services shall disperse the available funds so that each county that made a reimbursement request receives equal percentage reimbursements.
(a) Every person in charge of an institution as defined in this act shall keep a record of personal particulars and data concerning each person admitted or confined to the institution. The record shall be limited to information required by the standard certificate of birth, death and stillbirth forms issued under the provisions of this act. The record shall be made at the time of admission from information provided by the person, but when it cannot be so obtained, the same shall be obtained from relatives or other persons acquainted with the facts. The name and address of the person providing the information shall be a part of the record.
(b) When a dead human body is released or disposed of by an institution, the person in charge of the institution shall keep a record showing the name of the deceased, date of death, name and address of the person to whom the body is released, date of removal from the institution, or if finally disposed of by the institution, the date, place and manner of disposition.
(c) A funeral director, embalmer or other person who removes from the place of death or transports or finally disposes of a dead body or stillbirth, in addition to filing any certificate or other form required by this act, shall keep a record which shall identify the body, and such information pertaining to his receipt, removal, and delivery of the body as may be prescribed in regulations adopted by the division of health and medical services.
(d) Records maintained under this section shall be retained for a period of not less than ten (10) years and shall be made available for inspection by the state registrar of vital records or his representative upon demand.
35-1-430. Duties to furnish information relative to vital events.
Any person having actual knowledge of the facts shall furnish such information as he may possess regarding any birth, death, stillbirth, marriage or divorce upon demand of the state registrar of vital records.
(a) Any person who willfully and knowingly: (i) makes any false statement in a report, record, or certificate required to be filed under this act, or in an application for an amendment thereof, or supplies false information intending that such information be used in the preparation of any such report, record, or certificate, or amendment thereof; or (ii) without lawful authority and with the intent to deceive, makes, alters, amends, or mutilates any report, record, or certificate required to be filed under this act or a certified copy of such report, record, or certificate; or (iii) uses or attempts to use, or furnish to another for use, for any purpose of deception, any certificate, record, report or certified copy thereof so made, altered, amended, or mutilated; or (iv) with the intention to deceive uses or attempts to use any certificate of birth or certified copy of a record of birth knowing that such certificate or certified copy was issued upon a record which is false in whole or in part or which relates to the birth of another person; or (v) furnishes a certificate of birth or certified copy of a record of birth with the intention that it be used by a person other than the person to whom the record of birth relates; shall be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars ($100.00) or imprisoned not more than six (6) months, or both.
(b) Any person who: (i) knowingly transports or accepts for transportation, interment, or other disposition a dead body without an accompanying permit as provided in this act; or (ii) refuses to provide information required by this act; or (iii) willfully neglects or violates any of the provisions of this act or refuses to perform any of the duties imposed upon him by this act; shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) or be imprisoned for not more than six (6) months, or both.
The state department of health is hereby authorized and empowered to create and maintain a service of industrial hygiene as the state health officer may deem necessary.
The industrial hygiene service shall investigate places of employment and study those conditions which might be responsible for ill health of the industrial workers and submit a yearly report to the state treasurer.
The purpose and intent of this act is to establish, maintain and promote the development of a comprehensive range of services in communities of the state to serve priority populations and other persons affected by mental illness, substance use disorders, or developmental disabilities, and to provide shelter and crisis services for victims of family violence and sexual assault.
(a) As used in this act:
(i) "Community board" means a community mental health board, a substance use disorder board, a developmental disabilities board, or a family violence and sexual assault board, or a board offering a combination of human services programs, created under this act. For the purposes of this act every community board is also a public agency;
(ii) "Developmental disabilities" means a disability attributable to intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, autism or any other neurological condition requiring services similar to those required by persons with intellectual disabilities, that has continued or can be expected to continue indefinitely and constitutes a substantial impairment to the individual's ability to function in society;
(iii) "Department" means the department of health;
(iv) "Human services program" means community facilities, services and programs which exclusively or in part, are used or operated to prevent or treat mental illness, substance use disorders or developmental disabilities, to provide shelter and crisis services for victims of family violence or sexual assault or to provide other community based services which serve a public purpose;
(v) "Mental illness" means a condition which is manifested by a disorder or disturbance in behavior, feeling, thinking or judgment to such an extent that care and treatment are required, but does not include addiction to drugs or alcohol, drug or alcohol intoxication or developmental disabilities;
(vi) "Public agency" means an organization operated by a unit of local government or a combination of governments or agencies formed under the Wyoming Joint Powers Act;
(vii) "Substance" means alcoholic beverages and other drugs;
(viii) "Substance use disorder" means the use, without compelling medical reason, of any substance which results in psychological or physiological dependency as a function of continued use in such a manner as to induce mental, emotional or physical impairment or to cause socially dysfunctional behavior;
(ix) "Client" means any individual receiving services from a human service program authorized under this act;
(x) "Crisis services for victims of family violence and sexual assault" means emergency intervention, information, referral services and medical, legal and social services advocacy;
(xi) "Sexual assault" means any act made criminal under W.S. 6-2-302 through 6-2-304 and 6-4-402;
(xii) "Family violence" means domestic abuse as defined by W.S. 35-21-102(a)(iii);
(xiii) "Shelter" means a place of temporary refuge, offered on a twenty-four (24) hour, seven (7) day per week basis to victims of domestic violence and their children;
(xiv) "Adults with acute mental illness" means persons who are subject to an emergency detention under W.S. 25-10-109, an involuntary hospitalization order under W.S. 25-10-110 or a directed outpatient commitment order under W.S. 25-10-110.1, or who were released from an emergency detention or were discharged from an involuntary hospitalization or directed outpatient commitment order within the last six (6) months;
(xv) "Adults with severe mental illness" means persons who, based on diagnosis and history, have a substantial probability of being unable to meet their needs for food, shelter and medical care if they do not receive regular mental health treatment or case management;
(xvi) "Behavioral health center" means:
(A) A nationally accredited organization that is licensed to conduct business in the state of Wyoming and provides a comprehensive range of services for the treatment and management of mental illness and substance use disorders for priority populations; or
(B) For the purpose of federal reimbursement, a tribal federally qualified health center or a behavioral health service provider certified by the Indian health service of the United States department of health and human services.
(xvii) "Families at high risk" means:
(A) Children who have been discharged from an acute psychiatric facility or a psychiatric residential treatment facility within the previous six (6) months, and their immediate family members as defined by rule of the department of family services;
(B) A child or the parent, legal guardian or other immediate family member of a child, as defined by rule of the department of family services, who has been referred to a behavioral health center by the department of family services for treatment for a mental illness or a substance use disorder and the treatment is necessary to prevent the removal of the child from the child's home or to reunify the child with the child's family;
(C) A child who has been referred to a behavioral health center by a youth crisis shelter, school, primary care provider, licensed therapist or law enforcement officer for treatment for mental illness or a substance use disorder that impacts the child's life.
(xviii) "General access clients" means persons who do not meet the definition of a priority population under paragraph
(xxii) of this subsection;
(xix) "Indigent general access clients" means persons who do not have private or public health insurance that provides coverage for mental illness or substance use disorder treatment and whose total household income is not more than two hundred percent (200%) of the federal poverty level;
(xx) "Indigent clients with high needs" means persons who meet the definition of indigent general access clients under paragraph (xix) of this subsection and who have a mental illness or substance use disorder that substantially impairs their ability to function in society;
(xxi) "Nonstate level justice involved" means:
(A) Persons who within the previous six (6) months have been placed on probation and made subject to an intensive supervision program under W.S. 7-13-1102 that includes treatment for a mental illness or a substance use disorder;
(B) Persons who within the previous six (6) months have been convicted of or pled nolo contendere to a criminal offense and ordered to enroll in a treatment program for a mental illness or substance use disorder as part of their sentence;
(C) Persons on probation, parole or who have been conditionally released, who within the previous six (6) months have been sanctioned under W.S. 7-13-1802(b)(iv) through
(vi) and ordered to receive treatment for a mental illness or a substance use disorder;
(D) Qualified offenders under W.S. 7-13-1301 through 7-13-1304 who within the previous six (6) months have been ordered to receive treatment for a substance use disorder.
(xxii) "Priority population" means any person, as determined by the department, who falls into any of the following categories:
(A) State level justice involved;
(B) Nonstate level justice involved;
(C) Families at high risk;
(D) Adults with acute mental illness;
(E) Adults with severe mental illness;
(F) Indigent clients with high needs;
(G) Indigent general access clients.
(xxiii) "State level justice involved" means persons that within the previous six (6) months have been released or paroled from an institution as defined by W.S. 7-13-401(a)(vi) or who are awaiting admission to, evaluation from or have been evaluated by a facility as defined under W.S. 7-11-301(a)(ii) and who require continuing treatment for a mental illness or substance use disorder;
(xxiv) "This act" means W.S. 35-1-611 through 35-1-627.
35-1-614. Counties, school districts and cities may
contract for human services programs; counties may establish community boards.
(a) A county may contract with behavioral health centers or private or public agencies to provide human services programs for the county. The county may appropriate funds for the programs.
(b) A municipality may contract with behavioral health centers or private agencies or a community board to provide human services programs for the municipality. The municipality may appropriate funds for the programs.
(c) A school district may contract with behavioral health centers or private or public agencies to provide human services programs for school age children.
(d) A county may establish, or two (2) or more counties may agree to establish a community board, or community boards in accordance with this act. A community board shall provide human services to the entire county or counties in which it is established. A community board may offer one (1) or more services for persons affected by mental illness, substance use disorders, developmental disabilities or victims of family violence or sexual assault.