Beginning July 1, 2014, all adoptees 18 and older will have access to their original noncertified birth certificates unless a birth parent files a contact preference form indicating that he or she does not want the information released.

Adoptees in Washington state will finally have the chance to fill in some of the blanks in their background history.

Listen to Rep. Tina Orwall, the bill’s prime sponsor, talk about this important change in state law on KUOW: