California just took a major step toward digital innovation as it approved a law that utilizes blockchain technology. The law significantly upgrades the delivery of vital records to Californians in a secure and efficient manner.
Blockchain-Based Delivery Of Vital Records
Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law California Senate Bill No. 786 introduced by California state Senator Robert Hertzberg, the bill authorizes a county recorder to issue a certified copy of a birth, death, or marriage record by means of blockchain technology. In addition, the bill would require the county recorder to ensure that the release of those copies is subject to technical safeguards sufficient to prevent fraud and unauthorized or illegal access, destruction, use, modification, and disclosure.
However this week, Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed a crypto licensing and regulation framework seen likely as a West Coast version of New York’s BitLicense and recommended a more flexible approach that would expand through time with account for the safety of consumers and related costs. The Californian state has been grappled with several proposals related to cryptocurrency as the state is considered a competitive and innovative place in the United States.
How Blockchain Technology Could Benefit The Government
Traditional centralized government systems are inherently costly and government agencies face serious challenges when safeguarding and protecting sensitive records. Blockchain as new and emerging technology could support and advance key government functions. In a statement to Coindesk, Senator Hertzberg said that blockchain technology’s secured and highly convenient process will allow individuals to access vital records. Blockchain technology would enable the immediate distribution of birth, death, and marriage records as compared to the normal 10-day postal delivery.
Hertzberg told the Senate when arguing on the merits of the bill last month that this is not only a faster, cheaper, and more efficient delivery method for state services and further stated that it will save Californians both time and money and also a much more secure method to store data. Considering that California is the most populous in the United States.
Also, the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has proposed to advance the Improving Digital Identity Act of 2022 this week. It aims to establish a public-private digital identity task force, charged with strengthening privacy and digital ID verification methods across U.S. government agencies. Also, the bill prohibits the government from creating a centralized ID database, to minimize the risk of cybercrime and major data breaches.
