The Human Services Committee held House Bill 1068 after the Attorney General’s office proposed a targeted amendment clarifying confidentiality for photos and visual images of deceased persons.

Anika Lockard, an assistant attorney general, told the committee she prepared a proposed change “to address” an apparent conflict between HB 1068 and a separate bill dealing with images of decedents. Lockard explained that the amendment adds language on page 5, lines 9–10, specifying that confidentiality applies to images “in the possession of the forensic examiner, the examiner’s designee, or a county coroner.” She said the list was drawn from existing law in the chapter and intended to make the provision consistent with other statutes and a pending Senate bill.

Chairman Ruby said the committee would set the bill aside and expect another amendment to be presented next week. Lockard noted the related measure, Senate Bill 2083, had just passed out of Senate Judiciary earlier that day. No formal vote was taken on HB 1068; the committee postponed further action and will take up the bill at a future meeting when the additional amendment is available.

The committee’s limited discussion focused on ensuring statutory consistency across provisions dealing with images of decedents and maintaining confidentiality in forensic and coroner processes.