Bills are expected to be introduced in several legislatures in coming weeks to establish state organ and tissue donor registries, as the number of states with registries climbs into the 20s.

The newest statewide registry is currently being created in Utah, which expects to launch in the spring with the help of a $1 million federal grant that will fund its first three years of operations..

Registries also are under development in California and Iowa, according to The Lewin Group, Inc., a contractor for the Division of Transplantation in the Department of Health and Human Services.

States that have operational organ and tissue registries include: Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.