Beaver County: Free Discharge Recording and Veterans Vital Records

Recording. The Recorder of Deeds, Ronald Alberti, files and certifies veteran discharges among its services, and the county FAQ says all papers recorded there are public "except for Military Discharge papers, which are impounded". The Veterans Affairs office "recommends that all honorably discharged service members record their discharge documents with the County office", free, permanently on record, with certified copies available at any time and up to ten free copies of the discharge for the veteran. Under 16 Pa.C.S. 1302 and 1303 a recorded discharge is confidential for 85 years, released only to the veteran, immediate family, an authorised agent, a court, the director or a government agency. Free copies of vital records. Through the Veterans Affairs office, veterans "can obtain free certified copies of marriage license and divorce decrees", on application, for an honorably discharged veteran or a member of the armed forces serving in a war or armed conflict in which the United States is engaged, for use with a claim for death benefits, compensation allowance or family dependency allotments, and only where the marriage or divorce was applied for in Beaver County. Pennsylvania birth and death records are requested from PA Vital Statistics at 724-656-3100 or health.state.pa.us, free for veterans and their dependents; other states' records may not be free.