COLUMBIA - State and county vital records offices will begin using new security paper beginning July 14 for long-form birth certificates and Sept. 1 for other certifications, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control announced Wednesday.

"There is a continued effort to increase the security of documents - especially those that pertain to identity, which includes birth and death certificates,” said Luanne Miles, director of DHEC’s Division of Vital Records. "This new paper has many security features.

"South Carolina will have one of the most secure certifications in the country," Miles said. "As always, any certificate with obvious alterations should not be accepted for any purpose, but one of the added security features of the new paper is that any attempt to alter or erase information will be obvious."

According to Miles, birth and death long-form certificates, marriage certificates and reports of divorce will be issued on the new paper. The paper features a raised green intaglio border with a gold state seal on the lower left corner, the DHEC seal on the lower right corner, a document control number on the lower left side and the heading: "State of South Carolina, Certification of Vital Records," as well as the signatures of the state registrar and assistant state registrar. A watermark of the state emblem featuring a Palmetto tree and crescent moon can be viewed when the paper is held up to the light.

For additional information on S.C. vital records and instructions about how to order a certified copy of a vital record, go to DHEC's Web page

at: http://www.scdhec.gov.

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