Obtaining Key Personal Documents
June 27, 2009
One of the items we never think about until some government agency requires it is a birth certificate.
To get a driver's license in Georgia, you need a copy. I did not know where I had a copy.
How do you get one?
There is a site run by the U.S. government's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that makes this information easily available. It provides links to all of the 50 states. On each state's page, there are addresses for the agencies that provide copies of the following certificates: birth, death, marriage, and divorce.
I think it is a good idea to have these documents in your possession.
But where? The problem with bank safe deposit boxes is that they are sealed when one of the parties dies, unless the box is owned by a corporation or a trust. Check with your bank on the regulations. Since copies are cheap to obtain, a standard fire- resistant file or home safe will work.
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