New York Consolidated Laws, Public Health Law - PBH § 4176. Records;  correction of defective registration

1. If defects be found in the registration under the supervision of a registrar of vital statistics, the commissioner shall notify such registrar that such defects must be corrected within ten days of the date of the notice.

2. If such defects are not so corrected the commissioner shall take control of such registration and of the records thereof, and enforce the rules and regulations in regard thereto and secure a complete registration in such district, and such control shall continue until the registrar of vital statistics shall satisfy the commissioner that he will make such record and registry complete as required by law and in the sanitary code.

3. The expenses incurred by the commissioner or his authorized representative while in control of such registration shall be a charge upon the city, town or village comprising the registration district.

4. No certificate of birth or death, after its acceptance for registration by the registrar, and no new certificate or other record made in pursuance of this article, shall be altered or changed in any respect except to correct errors made in completing the certificate by the person responsible for preparing the certificate or as otherwise provided in this article.  The commissioner shall provide the application form for a correction of a record which must be properly dated, signed and witnessed, or subscribed and affirmed by the persons making them as true under the penalties of perjury, together with such supporting proofs as may be prescribed by the commissioner.