What's happening
This bill prohibits the approval or construction of stand-alone mausoleums or columbariums unless they have management contracts with regulated cemetery corporations to ensure perpetual care.
Why it matters
Aims to protect consumers and families. by ensuring that mausoleums and columbaria (which house remains above ground) cannot be operated as stand-alone businesses without a formal contract guaranteeing long-term care and management, reducing the risk of neglect or abandonment.
Requires stand-alone facilities to partner with regulated cemetery corporations. , meaning oversight and standards for perpetual care will be enforced, potentially raising trust and accountability in the industry.
Addresses concerns about what happens if a mausoleum or columbarium fails or closes. by mandating that space and services are pre-secured at a regulated cemetery, ensuring remains can be properly relocated and cared for in the future.
Limits private and religious entities’ ability to construct single-use facilities. without oversight, reducing the risk of poorly managed or underfunded operations that could leave families with unexpected costs or emotional distress.
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Who cares
Mausoleum and columbarium owners
Projects offering no other form of interment would need a management contract with an existing regulated cemetery corporation and reserved interment space and services to protect remains if operations cease or the facility is abandoned.
Religious corporations
They could not authorize construction of stand-alone mausoleums or columbariums on their property without the required management and backup interment arrangements.
Not-for-profit cemetery corporations
They could enter management contracts with private cemetery corporations for mausoleum or columbarium operations with prior approval from their boards.
New York State Cemetery Board
It would be barred from approving construction applications for mausoleums or columbariums that are a cemetery corporation’s only form of interment unless the required safeguards are in place.
Headline styles
Ban Stand-Alone Mausoleums
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
3 Co-sponsors
2 Multi-sponsors
History
- Signed chap.296
- Delivered to governor
- Returned to assembly
- Passed senateVote 59–3
- 3rd reading cal.1239
- Substituted for S2606B
- Referred to rules
- Delivered to senate
- Passed assembly
- Ordered to third reading rules cal.97
- Rules report cal.97
- Reported
Show 7 earlier actions
- Reported referred to rules
- Print number 5784b
- Amend (t) and recommit to corporations, authorities and commissions
- Referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
- Print number 5784a
- Amend and recommit to corporations, authorities and commissions
- Referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Limit Stand-Alone Mausoleums
Senate Floor Calendar · Sponsor Betty Little
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
5784--B
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 15, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. JONES, PHEFFER AMATO, CASTORINA, ERRIGO -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK, GALEF -- read once and referred to the Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions -committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- recommitted to the Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the not-for-profit corporation law and the religious corporations law, in relation to prohibiting certain stand-alone mausoleum and columbarium
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 1506 of the not-for-profit corporation law is amended by adding a new paragraph (m) to read as follows:
(m) Prohibition of stand-alone mausoleum and columbarium. No application for the construction of a mausoleum or columbarium to be located in any city, town or village shall be approved by the cemetery board when such mausoleum or columbarium shall be the only form of interment offered by a cemetery corporation, unless a management contract has been entered into with an existing cemetery corporation regulated under this article, that will provide operational management of the mausoleum or columbarium, and the owner of the mausoleum or columbarium has reserved interment space and secured interment services in a cemetery regulated under this article, in order to assure continued perpetual care of the remains contained in the mausoleum or columbarium should such mausoleum or columbarium become abandoned or choose to cease operations.
§ 2. Subparagraph 7 of paragraph (a) of section 1506-a of the not-forprofit corporation law, as added by chapter 560 of the laws of 1998, is amended to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00767-05-8
A. 5784--B 2
(7) have, enter into or perform a management contract with any entity other than a not-for-profit cemetery corporation; provided, however, that a not-for-profit cemetery corporation may enter into or perform a management contract with a private cemetery corporation for the operational management of a mausoleum or columbarium by such private cemetery corporation provided such contract shall have first been authorized by the board of the not-for-profit cemetery corporation.
§ 3. The closing paragraph of section 7 of the religious corporations law, as added by chapter 560 of the laws of 1998, is amended to read as follows:
Only the provisions of subparagraphs (a) and (b) of the previous paragraph shall apply to religious corporations with thirty acres or less of real property dedicated to cemetery purposes, and only to the extent the sale or lease is of real property dedicated to cemetery purposes, and such cemeteries shall not engage in the sale of funeral home goods or services, except if such goods and services are otherwise permitted to be sold by cemeteries. No religious corporation shall approve or authorize the construction of a mausoleum or columbarium on property owned by the religious corporation where such mausoleum or columbarium shall be the only form of interment offered for cemetery purposes unless a management contract has been entered into with an existing cemetery corporation regulated under article fifteen of the not-for-profit corporation law, that will provide operational management of the mausoleum or columbarium, and the owner of the mausoleum or columbarium has reserved interment space and secured interment services in a cemetery regulated under this article, in order to assure continued perpetual care of the remains contained in the mausoleum or columbarium should such mausoleum or columbarium become abandoned or choose to cease operations.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.