HB 1641 2003
1	CHAMBER ACTION
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6	The Committee on Commerce recommends the following:
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8	Committee Substitute
9	Remove the entire bill and insert:
10	A bill to be entitled
11	An act relating to funeral and cemetery services, funeral
12	directing, embalming, and direct disposition; amending s.
13	470.002, F.S.; revising and providing definitions;
14	amending s. 470.0085, F.S.; extending the embalmer
15	apprentice period; amending s. 470.021, F.S.; providing
16	additional requirements to be a direct disposal
17	establishment; providing inspection requirements and
18	criteria; amending s. 470.024, F.S.; revising requirements
19	to be a funeral establishment; amending s. 470.025, F.S.;
20	revising cremation requirements for cinerator facilities
21	relating to simultaneous cremations, body parts, cremation
22	containers, and the cremation chamber; providing exemption
23	from liability for unintentional or incidental commingling
24	of remains under certain conditions; amending s. 470.0255,
25	F.S.; providing for cremation of parts of human bodies
26	incidental to final disposition; amending s. 470.028,
27	F.S.; providing for control and supervision of preneed
28	agents; amending s. 470.029, F.S.; extending the filing
29	time for reports of bodies embalmed or handled; amending
30	s. 470.031, F.S.; prohibiting any guarantee on the future
31	price of any goods or services; providing penalties;
32	amending s. 470.0355, F.S.; revising requirements for
33	identification of human remains prior to final
34	disposition; providing requirements for identification of
35	human remains in licensed and unlicensed cemeteries and by
36	direct disposal establishments; reenacting s. 470.036,
37	F.S., relating to disciplinary proceedings, to incorporate
38	the amendment to s. 470.031, F.S., in a reference thereto;
39	amending s. 497.005, F.S.; revising and providing
40	definitions; creating s. 497.306, F.S.; providing
41	dimension and spacing standards for grave spaces;
42	requiring a map of reference markers and a land survey for
43	areas proposed to be developed by a licensed cemetery
44	company; exempting adult grave spaces previously
45	established; creating s. 497.307, F.S.; providing
46	requirements for identification of human remains in
47	licensed cemeteries; amending s. 497.405, F.S.;
48	prohibiting any person from advertising for sale or making
49	any arrangement for a preneed contract without having a
50	valid certificate of authority; expanding the exemption
51	from the required certificate of authority for certain
52	religious-institution-owned cemeteries to include the sale
53	and opening or closing of cremation interment containers
54	to members and family members of the religious
55	institution; amending s. 497.419, F.S.; requiring preneed
56	contracts to include in the refund notice the exclusion
57	for amounts allocable to burial rights, merchandise, and
58	services used by the purchaser; amending s. 497.436, F.S.;
59	authorizing the Board of Funeral and Cemetery Services to
60	review the trust funds, trust agreements, and outstanding
61	preneed contracts of, and perform other procedures at its
62	discretion with respect to, a certificateholder filing
63	notice to become inactive; providing an effective date.
64
65	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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67	Section 1. Section 470.002, Florida Statutes, is amended
68	to read:
69	470.002 Definitions.--As used in this chapter:
70	(1)(15)"Alternative container" means a nonmetal
71	receptacle or enclosure which is less expensive than a casket
72	and of sufficient strength to be used to hold and transport a
73	dead human body.
74	(2)(22)"At-need solicitation" means any uninvited contact
75	by a funeral director or direct disposer for the purpose of the
76	sale of funeral services or merchandise to the family or next of
77	kin of a person after that person has died.
78	(3)(2)"Board" means the Board of Funeral Directors and
79	Embalmers.
80	(4) "Body parts" means:
81	(a) Limbs or other portions of the anatomy that are
82	removed from a person or human remains for medical purposes
83	during treatment, surgery, biopsy, autopsy, or medical research;
84	or
85	(b) Human bodies or any portions of human bodies which
86	have been donated to science for medical research purposes.
87	(5)(16)"Casket" means a rigid container which is designed
88	for the encasement of human remains for burial,andwhich is
89	usually constructed of wood or metal, ornamented, and lined with
90	fabric, and which may or may not be combustible.
91	(6)(27)"Centralized embalming facility" means a facility,
92	not physically connected with a funeral establishment, in which
93	embalming takes place.
94	(7)(14)"Cinerator" means a facility where dead human
95	bodies are reduced to a residue, including bone fragments, by
96	direct flame, also known as "cremation," or by intense heat,
97	also known as "calcination."
98	(8) "Closed container" means any container in which
99	cremated remains can be placed and closed in a manner so as to
100	prevent leakage or spillage of the remains.
101	(9) "Cremated remains" means all the remains of the human
102	body recovered after the completion of the cremation process,
103	including processing or pulverization which leaves only bone
104	fragments reduced to unidentifiable dimensions and may include
105	the residue of any foreign matter, including casket material,
106	bridgework, or eyeglasses that were cremated with the human
107	remains.
108	(10)(24) "Cremation" means the technical process, using
109	direct flame and heat, that reduces human remains to bone
110	fragments through heat and evaporation. Cremation includes the
111	processing and usually includes the pulverization of the bone
112	fragmentsincludes any mechanical or thermal process whereby a
113	dead human body is reduced to ashes and bone fragments.
114	Cremation also includes any other mechanical or thermal process
115	whereby human remains are pulverized, burned, recremated, or
116	otherwise further reduced in size or quantity.
117	(11) "Cremation chamber" means the enclosed space within
118	which the cremation process takes place. Cremation chambers
119	covered by these procedures must be used exclusively for the
120	cremation of human remains.
121	(12) "Cremation container" means the container in which
122	the human remains are transported to and placed in the cremation
123	chamber for a cremation. A cremation container should meet
124	substantially all of the following standards:
125	(a) Be composed of readily combustible materials suitable
126	for cremation.
127	(b) Be able to be closed in order to provide a complete
128	covering for the human remains.
129	(c) Be resistant to leakage or spillage.
130	(d) Be rigid enough to be handled with ease.
131	(e) Be able to provide protection for the health, safety,
132	and personal integrity of crematory personnel.
133	(13) "Cremation interment container" means a rigid outer
134	container that, subject to a cemetery’s rules and regulations,
135	is composed of concrete, steel, fiberglass, or some similar
136	material in which an urn is placed prior to being interred in
137	the ground and which is designed to support the earth above the
138	urn.
139	(14)(1)"Department" means the Department of Business and
140	Professional Regulation.
141	(15)(8)"Direct disposal establishment" means a facility
142	registered under this chapter where a direct disposer practices
143	direct disposition.
144	(16)(9)"Direct disposer" means any person registered
145	under this chapter to practice direct disposition in this state.
146	(17)(28)"Disinterment" means removal of a dead human body
147	from earth interment or aboveground interment.
148	(18)(5)"Embalmer" means any person licensed under this
149	chapter to practice embalming in this state.
150	(19)(11)"Final disposition" means the final disposal of a
151	dead human body by earth interment, aboveground interment,
152	cremation, burial at sea, or delivery to a medical institution
153	for lawful dissection if the medical institution assumes
154	responsibility for disposal. "Final disposition" does not
155	include the disposal or distribution of ashes and residue of
156	cremated human remains.
157	(20)(13)"Funeral" or "funeral service" means the
158	observances, services, or ceremonies held to commemorate the
159	life of a specific deceased human being, and at which the human
160	remains are present.
161	(21)(3)"Funeral director" means any person licensed under
162	this chapter to practice funeral directing in this state.
163	(22)(7)"Funeral establishment" means a facility licensed
164	under this chapter where a funeral director or embalmer
165	practices funeral directing or embalming.
166	(23)(12)"Funeral merchandise" or "merchandise" means any
167	merchandise commonly sold in connection with the funeral, final
168	disposition, or memorialization of human remains, including, but
169	not limited to, caskets, outer burial containers, alternative
170	containers, cremation containers, cremation interment
171	containers,urns, monuments, private mausoleums, flowers,
172	shrubs, benches, vases, acknowledgment cards, register books,
173	memory folders, prayer cards, and clothing.
174	(24)(23)"Human remains" or "remains," "dead human body"
175	or "dead human bodies," means the body of a deceased human
176	person for which a death certificate or fetal death certificate
177	is required under chapter 382 and includes the body in any stage
178	of decomposition and the residue of cremated human bodies.
179	(25)(18)"Legally authorized person" means, in the
180	priority listed, the decedent, when written inter vivos
181	authorizations and directions are provided by the decedent, the
182	surviving spouse, unless the spouse has been arrested for
183	committing against the deceased an act of domestic violence as
184	defined in s. 741.28 that resulted in or contributed to the
185	death of the deceased, a son or daughter who is 18 years of age
186	or older, a parent, a brother or sister 18 years of age or over,
187	a grandchild who is 18 years of age or older, or a grandparent;
188	or any person in the next degree of kinship. In addition, the
189	term may include, if no family exists or is available, the
190	following: the guardian of the dead person at the time of death;
191	the personal representative of the deceased; the attorney in
192	fact of the dead person at the time of death; the health
193	surrogate of the dead person at the time of death; a public
194	health officer; the medical examiner, county commission or
195	administrator acting under chapter 245, or other public
196	administrator; a representative of a nursing home or other
197	health care institution in charge of final disposition; or a
198	friend or other person not listed in this subsection who is
199	willing to assume the responsibility as authorized person. Where
200	there is a person in any priority class listed in this
201	subsection, the funeral establishment shall rely upon the
202	authorization of any one legally authorized person of that class
203	if that individual represents that he or she is not aware of any
204	objection to the cremation of the deceased's human remains by
205	others in the same class of the person making the representation
206	or of any person in a higher priority class.
207	(26) "Niche" means a compartment or cubicle for the
208	memorialization or permanent placement of a container or urn
209	containing cremated remains.
210	(27)(19)"Outer burial container" means an enclosure into
211	which a casket is placed, including, but not limited to, a vault
212	made of concrete, steel, fiberglass, or copper, a sectional
213	concrete enclosure, a crypt, or a wooden enclosure.
214	(28)(20)"Personal residence" means any residential
215	building in which one temporarily or permanently maintains his
216	or her abode, including, but not limited to, an apartment or a
217	hotel, motel, nursing home, convalescent home, home for the
218	aged, or a public or private institution.
219	(29)(10)"Practice of direct disposition" means the
220	cremation of human remains without preparation of the human
221	remains by embalming and without any attendant services or rites
222	such as funeral or graveside services or the making of
223	arrangements for such final disposition.
224	(30)(6)"Practice of embalming" means disinfecting or
225	preserving or attempting to disinfect or preserve dead human
226	bodies by replacing certain body fluids with preserving and
227	disinfecting chemicals.
228	(31)(4)"Practice of funeral directing" means the
229	performance by a licensed funeral director of any of those
230	functions authorized by s. 470.0087.
231	(32)(21)"Preneed sales agent" means any person who is
232	registered under chapter 497 to sell preneed burial or funeral
233	service and merchandise contracts or direct disposition
234	contracts in this state.
235	(33) "Processing" means the reduction of identifiable bone
236	fragments after the completion of the cremation process to
237	unidentifiable bone fragments by manual means.
238	(34) "Pulverization" means the reduction of identifiable
239	bone fragments after the completion of the cremation and
240	processing to granulated particles by manual or mechanical
241	means.
242	(35)(25)"Refrigeration facility" means a facility that is
243	not physically connected with a funeral establishment, crematory
244	or direct disposal establishment, that maintains space and
245	equipment for the storage and refrigeration of dead human
246	bodies, and that offers its service to funeral directors and
247	funeral establishments for a fee.
248	(36)(26)"Removal service" means any service that operates
249	independently of a funeral establishment, that handles the
250	initial removal of dead human bodies, and that offers its
251	service to funeral establishments and direct disposal
252	establishments for a fee.
253	(37)(17)"Solicitation" means any communication which
254	directly or implicitly requests an immediate oral response from
255	the recipient.
256	(38) "Temporary container" means a receptacle for cremated
257	remains usually made of cardboard, plastic, or similar material
258	designated to hold the cremated remains until an urn or other
259	permanent container is acquired.
260	(39) "Urn" means a receptacle designed to permanently
261	encase cremated remains.
262	Section 2. Section 470.0085, Florida Statutes, is amended
263	to read:
264	470.0085 Establishment of embalmer apprentice
265	program.--The board may adopt rules establishing an embalmer
266	apprentice program. An embalmer apprentice may perform only
267	those tasks, functions, and duties relating to embalming which
268	are performed under the direct supervision of a licensed
269	embalmer. An embalmer apprentice shall be eligible to serve in
270	an apprentice capacity for a period not to exceed 3 years1 year
271	as may be determined by board rule or for a period not to exceed
272	53years if the apprentice is enrolled in and attending a
273	course in mortuary science or funeral service education at any
274	mortuary college or funeral service education college or school.
275	An embalmer apprentice shall be registered with the board upon
276	payment of a registration fee not to exceed $50.
277	Section 3. Subsections (2) and (5) of section 470.021,
278	Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
279	470.021 Direct disposal establishment; standards and
280	location; registration.--
281	(2) The practice of direct disposition must be engaged in
282	at a fixed location of at least 625 interior contiguous square
283	feet and must maintain or make arrangements for suitable
284	capacity for the refrigeration and storage of dead human bodies
285	handled and stored by the establishment. No person may open or
286	maintain an establishment at which to engage in or hold himself
287	or herself out as engaging in the practice of direct disposition
288	unless such establishment is registered with the board. Any
289	change in location of such establishment shall be reported
290	promptly to the board as prescribed by rule of the board.
291	(5)(a) Each direct disposal establishment shall at all
292	times be subject to the inspection of all its buildings,
293	grounds, and vehicles used in the conduct of its business, by
294	the department, the Department of Health, and local government
295	inspectors and by their agents. The board shall adopt rules
296	which establish such inspection requirements.
297	(b) The board shall set by rule an annual inspection fee
298	not to exceed $100, payable upon application for registration
299	and upon each renewal of such registration.
300	(c) Each cinerator facility shall be inspected prior to
301	the issuance and renewal of its license and shall:
302	1. Maintain one or more retorts for the reduction of dead
303	human bodies.
304	2. Maintain refrigeration which satisfies the standards
305	set by the Department of Health and which contains a sufficient
306	number of shelves for the average daily number of bodies stored,
307	if unembalmed bodies are kept at the site.
308	3. Maintain sufficient pollution control equipment to
309	comply with requirements of the Department of Environmental
310	Protection in order to secure annual approved certification.
311	4. Either have on site or immediately available sufficient
312	sealed containers of a type required for the transportation of
313	bodies as specified in Rule 10D-37.012, F.A.C.
314	5. Maintain the premises in a clean and sanitary
315	condition.
316	6. Have appropriate Department of Environmental Protection
317	permits.
318	7. Retain all signed contracts for a period of at least 2
319	years.
320	Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 470.024, Florida
321	Statutes, is amended to read:
322	470.024 Funeral establishment; licensure.--
323	(1) A funeral establishment shall be a place at a specific
324	street address or location consisting of at least 1,250
325	contiguous interior square feet and must maintain or make
326	arrangements for eithersuitable capacity for the refrigeration
327	and storage of dead human bodies handled and stored by the
328	establishment andora preparation room equipped with necessary
329	ventilation and drainage and containing necessary instruments
330	for embalming dead human bodies or must make arrangements for a
331	preparation room as established by board rule.
332	Section 5. Subsections (6), (13), (14), and (15) of
333	section 470.025, Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection
334	(16) is added to said section, to read:
335	470.025 Cinerator facility; licensure.--
336	(6) No more than one dead human body may be placed in a
337	retort at one time, unless written permission has been received
338	from a legally authorized person for each body. The operator of
339	a cinerator facility shall be entitled to rely on the permission
340	of a legally authorized person to cremate more than one human
341	body.
342	(13) A cinerator facility shall not place human remains or
343	body parts in a retort or cremation chamberunless the human
344	remains are in an alternative container, cremation container,or
345	casket. Human remains may be transported in a cremation
346	containeror stored if they are completely covered, and at all
347	times treated with dignity and respect. Cremation may include
348	the processing and pulverization of bone fragments. Cremated
349	remains may be placed in a temporary container following
350	cremation.None of the provisions contained in this subsection
351	require the purchase of a casket for cremation. This subsection
352	applies to at-need contracts and preneed contracts entered into
353	pursuant to chapter 497 after June 1, 1996.
354	(14) Each cinerator facility shall ensure that all
355	alternative containers, cremation containers,or caskets used
356	for cremation contain no amount of chlorinated plastics not
357	authorized by the Department of Environmental Protection, that
358	they also are composed of readily combustible materials suitable
359	for cremation, able to be closed to provide a complete covering
360	for the human remains, resistant to leakage or spillage, rigid
361	enough for handling with ease, and able to provide for the
362	health, safety, and personal integrity of the public and
363	crematory personnel.
364	(15) The board shall adopt, by rule, criteria for
365	acceptable cremation andalternative containers.
366	(16) The operator of a cinerator facility shall establish
367	written procedures for the removal of remains and bone
368	fragments, to the extent possible, resulting from the cremation
369	of a human body and the postcremation processing, shipping,
370	packing, or identifying of those remains. If an operator follows
371	these procedures, the operator is not liable for the
372	unintentional or incidental commingling of human remains and
373	bone fragments resulting from more than one cremation cycle or
374	from postcremation processing, shipping, packing, or identifying
375	of those remains. A copy of the procedures shall be available,
376	upon request, to the department and legally authorized persons.
377	Section 6. Section 470.0255, Florida Statutes, is amended
378	to read:
379	470.0255 Cremation; procedure required.--
380	(1) At the time of the arrangement for a cremation
381	performed by any person licensed pursuant to this chapter, the
382	person contracting for cremation services shall be required to
383	designate his or her intentions with respect to the disposition
384	of the cremated remains of the deceased in a signed declaration
385	of intent which shall be provided by and retained by the funeral
386	or direct disposal establishment. A cremation may not be
387	performed until a legally authorized person gives written
388	authorization for such cremation. The cremation must be
389	performed within 48 hours after a specified time which has been
390	agreed to in writing by the person authorizing the cremation.
391	(2) With respect to any person who intends to provide for
392	the cremation of the deceased, if, after a period of 120 days
393	from the time of cremation the cremated remains have not been
394	claimed, the funeral or direct disposal establishment may
395	dispose of the cremated remains. Such disposal shall include
396	scattering them at sea or placing them in a licensed cemetery
397	scatter garden or pond or in a church columbarium or otherwise
398	disposing of the remains as provided by rule of the department
399	or board.
400	(3) Pursuant to the request of a legally authorized person
401	and incidental to final disposition, cremation may be performed
402	on parts of human remains. This subsection does not authorize
403	the cremation of body parts as defined in s. 470.002.
404	Section 7. Section 470.028, Florida Statutes, is amended
405	to read:
406	470.028 Preneed sales; registration of agents; control and
407	supervision of agents.--
408	(1) All sales of preneed funeral service contracts or
409	direct disposition contracts shall be made pursuant to chapter
410	497.
411	(2) No person may act as an agent for a funeral
412	establishment or direct disposal establishment with respect to
413	the sale of preneed contracts unless such person is registered
414	pursuant to chapter 497.
415	(3) Each licensee or registrant shall be subject to
416	discipline if his or her agent violates any provision of this
417	chapter applicable to such licensee or registrant as established
418	by board rule.
419	(4)(a) The funeral director in charge of a funeral
420	establishment shall be responsible for the control and
421	activities of the establishment's preneed agents.
422	(b) The direct disposer in charge or a funeral director
423	acting as a direct disposer in charge of a direct disposal
424	establishment shall be responsible for the control and
425	activities of the establishment's preneed agents.
426	Section 8. Subsection (1) of section 470.029, Florida
427	Statutes, is amended to read:
428	470.029 Reports of cases embalmed and bodies handled.--
429	(1) Each funeral establishment, direct disposal
430	establishment, cinerator facility, and centralized embalming
431	facility shall report on a form prescribed and furnished by the
432	department the name of the deceased and such other information
433	as may be required with respect to each dead human body embalmed
434	or otherwise handled by the establishment or facility. Such
435	forms shall be signed by the embalmer who performs the
436	embalming, if the body is embalmed, and the funeral director in
437	charge of the establishment or facility or by the direct
438	disposer who disposes of the body. The board shall prescribe by
439	rule the procedures in submitting such documentation. Reports
440	required by this subsection shall be filed by the 20th10thday
441	of each month for final dispositions handled the preceding
442	month.
443	Section 9. Section 470.031, Florida Statutes, is amended
444	to read:
445	470.031 Prohibitions; penalties.--
446	(1) No person may:
447	(a) Practice funeral directing, embalming, or direct
448	disposition unless the person holds an active license or
449	registration under this chapter.
450	(b) Use the name or title "funeral director," "embalmer,"
451	or "direct disposer" when the person has not been licensed or
452	registered pursuant to this chapter.
453	(c) Represent as his or her own the license or
454	registration of another.
455	(d) Give false or forged evidence to the board, a member
456	thereof, or the department for the purpose of obtaining a
457	license or registration.
458	(e) Use or attempt to use a license or registration which
459	has been suspended or revoked.
460	(f) Knowingly employ unlicensed persons in the practice of
461	funeral directing, embalming, or direct disposing.
462	(g) Knowingly conceal information relative to violations
463	of this chapter.
464	(h) Operate an unlicensed cinerator facility.
465	(i) Except as provided for in chapter 497, guarantee the
466	price of goods and services at a future date.
467	(2) Any person who violates the provisions of this section
468	commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as
469	provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
470	Section 10. Section 470.0355, Florida Statutes, is amended
471	to read:
472	470.0355 Identification of human remains.--
473	(1) PRIOR TO FINAL DISPOSITION.--
474	(a)(1)The licensee or registrant in charge of the final
475	disposition of dead human remains shall, prior to final
476	disposition of such dead human remains, affix on the ankle or
477	wrist of the deceased, andorin the casket or alternative
478	container or cremation container, proper identification of the
479	dead human remains. The identification or tag shall be encased
480	in or consist of durable and long-lasting material containing
481	the name, date of birth, and date of death, and social security
482	numberof the deceased, if available. If the dead human remains
483	are cremated, proper identification shall be placed in the
484	container or urn containing the remains.
485	(b)(2)Any licensee or registrant responsible for removal
486	of dead human remains to any establishment, facility, or
487	location shall ensure that the remains are identified by a tag
488	or other means of identification that is affixed to the ankle or
489	wrist of the deceased at the time the remains are removed from
490	the place of death or other location.
491	(c)(3)Any licensee or registrant may rely on the
492	representation of a legally authorized person to establish the
493	identity of dead human remains.
494	(2) IN UNLICENSED CEMETERIES.--Effective October 1, 2003,
495	the identification of human remains interred in an unlicensed
496	cemetery shall be the responsibility of the licensed funeral
497	establishment in charge of the funeral arrangements for the
498	deceased person. The licensed funeral establishment in charge of
499	the funeral arrangements for the interment in an unlicensed
500	cemetery of human remains shall place on the outer burial
501	container, cremation internment container, or other container or
502	on the inside of a crypt or niche a tag or permanent identifying
503	mark containing the name of the decedent and the date of death,
504	if available. The materials and locations of the tag or mark
505	shall be more specifically described by the rule of the board.
506	(3) IN LICENSED CEMETERIES.--Effective October 1, 2003,
507	human remains at licensed cemeteries shall be identified as
508	follows:
509	(a) Each licensed cemetery shall place on the outer burial
510	container, cremation interment container, or other container or
511	on the inside of a crypt or niche a tag or permanent identifying
512	marker containing the name of the decedent and the date of
513	death, if available. The materials and the location of the tag
514	or marker shall be more specifically described by rule of the
515	board.
516	(b) Each licensed cemetery may rely entirely on the
517	identity stated on the burial transit permit or on the
518	identification supplied by a person licensed under chapter 470
519	to establish the identity of the dead human remains delivered by
520	such person for burial and shall not be liable for any
521	differences between the identity shown on the burial transit
522	permit or identification and the actual identity of the dead
523	human remains delivered by such person and buried in the
524	cemetery.
525	(4) DIRECT DISPOSAL ESTABLISHMENTS.--Direct disposal
526	establishments shall establish a system of identification of
527	human remains received which shall be designed to track the
528	identity of the remains from the time of receipt until delivery
529	of the remains to the authorized persons. This is in addition to
530	the requirements for identification of human remains set forth
531	in subsection (1). A copy of the identification procedures shall
532	be available, upon request, to the department and legally
533	authorized persons.
534	Section 11. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
535	to section 470.031, Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto,
536	paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 470.036, Florida
537	Statutes, is reenacted to read:
538	470.036 Disciplinary proceedings.--
539	(1) The following acts constitute grounds for which the
540	disciplinary actions in subsection (2) may be taken:
541	(a) Violation of any provision of s. 455.227(1) or s.
542	470.031.
543	Section 12. Section 497.005, Florida Statutes, is amended
544	to read:
545	497.005 Definitions.--As used in this chapter:
546	(1) "At-need solicitation" means any uninvited contact by
547	a licensee or her or his agent for the purpose of the sale of
548	burial services or merchandise to the family or next of kin of a
549	person after her or his death has occurred.
550	(2) "Bank of belowground crypts" means any construction
551	unit of belowground crypts which is acceptable to the department
552	and which a cemetery uses to initiate its belowground crypt
553	program or to add to existing belowground crypt structures.
554	(3) "Belowground crypts" consist of interment space in
555	preplaced chambers, either side by side or multiple depth,
556	covered by earth and sod and known also as "lawn crypts,"
557	"westminsters," or "turf-top crypts."
558	(4) "Board" means the Board of Funeral and Cemetery
559	Services.
560	(5) "Burial merchandise," "funeral merchandise," or
561	"merchandise" means any personal property offered or sold by any
562	person for use in connection with the final disposition,
563	memorialization, interment, entombment, or inurnment of human
564	remains.
565	(6) "Burial right" means the right to use a grave space,
566	mausoleum, columbarium, ossuary, or scattering garden for the
567	interment, entombment, inurnment, or other disposition of human
568	remains.
569	(7) "Burial service," "funeral service," or "service"
570	means any service offered or provided by any person in
571	connection with the final disposition, memorialization,
572	interment, entombment, or inurnment of human remains.
573	(8) "Care and maintenance" means the perpetual process of
574	keeping a cemetery and its lots, graves, grounds, landscaping,
575	roads, paths, parking lots, fences, mausoleums, columbaria,
576	vaults, crypts, utilities, and other improvements, structures,
577	and embellishments in a well-cared-for and dignified condition,
578	so that the cemetery does not become a nuisance or place of
579	reproach and desolation in the community. As specified in the
580	rules of the board, "care and maintenance" may include, but is
581	not limited to, any or all of the following activities: mowing
582	the grass at reasonable intervals; raking and cleaning the grave
583	spaces and adjacent areas; pruning of shrubs and trees;
584	suppression of weeds and exotic flora; and maintenance, upkeep,
585	and repair of drains, water lines, roads, buildings, and other
586	improvements. "Care and maintenance" may include, but is not
587	limited to, reasonable overhead expenses necessary for such
588	purposes, including maintenance of machinery, tools, and
589	equipment used for such purposes. "Care and maintenance" may
590	also include repair or restoration of improvements necessary or
591	desirable as a result of wear, deterioration, accident, damage,
592	or destruction. "Care and maintenance" does not include expenses
593	for the construction and development of new grave spaces or
594	interment structures to be sold to the public.
595	(9) "Casket" means a rigid container which is designed for
596	the encasement of human remains,andwhich is usually
597	constructed of wood or metal, ornamented, and lined with fabric,
598	and which may or may not be combustible.
599	(10) "Cemetery" means a place dedicated to and used or
600	intended to be used for the permanent interment of human
601	remains. A cemetery may contain land or earth interment;
602	mausoleum, vault, or crypt interment; a columbarium, ossuary,
603	scattering garden, or other structure or place used or intended
604	to be used for the interment or disposition of cremated human
605	remains; or any combination of one or more of such structures or
606	places.
607	(11) "Cemetery company" means any legal entity that owns
608	or controls cemetery lands or property.
609	(12) "Certificateholder" or "licensee" means the person or
610	entity that is authorized under this chapter to sell preneed
611	funeral or burial services, preneed funeral or burial
612	merchandise, or burial rights. Each term shall include the
613	other, as applicable, as the context requires. For the purposes
614	of chapter 120, all certificateholders, licensees, and
615	registrants shall be considered licensees.
616	(13) "Columbarium" means a structure or building which is
617	substantially exposed above the ground and which is intended to
618	be used for the inurnment of cremated human remains.
619	(14) "Common business enterprise" means a group of two or
620	more business entities that share common ownership in excess of
621	50 percent.
622	(15) "Cremation" includes any mechanical or thermal
623	process whereby a dead human body is reduced to ashes. Cremation
624	also includes any other mechanical or thermal process whereby
625	human remains are pulverized, burned, recremated, or otherwise
626	further reduced in size or quantity.
627	(16) "Department" means the Department of Banking and
628	Finance.
629	(17) "Direct disposer" means any person who is registered
630	in this state to practice direct disposition pursuant to the
631	provisions of chapter 470.
632	(18) "Final disposition" means the final disposal of a
633	dead human body whether by interment, entombment, burial at sea,
634	cremation, or any other means and includes, but is not limited
635	to, any other disposition of remains for which a segregated
636	charge is imposed.
637	(19) "Funeral director" means any person licensed in this
638	state to practice funeral directing pursuant to the provisions
639	of chapter 470.
640	(20) "Grave space" means a space of ground in a cemetery
641	intended to be used for the interment in the ground of human
642	remains.
643	(21) "Human remains" means the bodies of deceased persons
644	and includes bodies in any stage of decomposition and cremated
645	remains.
646	(22) "Mausoleum" means a structure or building which is
647	substantially exposed above the ground and which is intended to
648	be used for the entombment of human remains.
649	(23) "Mausoleum section" means any construction unit of a
650	mausoleum which is acceptable to the department and which a
651	cemetery uses to initiate its mausoleum program or to add to its
652	existing mausoleum structures.
653	(24) "Monument" means any product used for identifying a
654	grave site and cemetery memorials of all types, including
655	monuments, markers, and vases.
656	(25) "Monument establishment" means a facility that
657	operates independently of a cemetery or funeral establishment
658	and that offers to sell monuments or monument services to the
659	public for placement in a cemetery.
660	(26) "Net assets" means the amount by which the total
661	assets of a certificateholder, excluding goodwill, franchises,
662	customer lists, patents, trademarks, and receivables from or
663	advances to officers, directors, employees, salespersons, and
664	affiliated companies, exceed total liabilities of the
665	certificateholder. For purposes of this definition, the term
666	"total liabilities" does not include the capital stock, paid-in
667	capital, or retained earnings of the certificateholder.
668	(27) "Net worth" means total assets minus total
669	liabilities pursuant to generally accepted accounting
670	principles.
671	(28) "Niche" means a compartment or cubicle for the
672	memorialization or permanent placement of an urn containing
673	cremated remains.
674	(29)(28)"Ossuary" means a receptacle used for the
675	communal placement of cremated human remains without benefit of
676	an urn or any other container in which remains will be
677	commingled with other cremated human remains and are
678	nonrecoverable. It may or may not include memorialization.
679	(30)(29)"Outer burial container" means an enclosure into
680	which a casket is placed and includes, but is not limited to,
681	vaults made of concrete, steel, fiberglass, or copper; sectional
682	concrete enclosures; crypts; and wooden enclosures.
683	(31)(30)"Preneed contract" means any arrangement or
684	method, of which the provider of funeral merchandise or services
685	has actual knowledge, whereby any person agrees to furnish
686	funeral merchandise or service in the future.
687	(32)(31)"Religious institution" means an organization
688	formed primarily for religious purposes which has qualified for
689	exemption from federal income tax as an exempt organization
690	under the provisions of s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue
691	Code of 1986, as amended.
692	(33)(32)"Scattering garden" means a location set aside,
693	within a cemetery, which is used for the spreading or
694	broadcasting of cremated remains that have been removed from
695	their container and can be mixed with or placed on top of the
696	soil or ground cover or buried in an underground receptacle on a
697	commingled basis and that are nonrecoverable. It may or may not
698	include memorialization.
699	(34)(33)"Servicing agent" means any person acting as an
700	independent contractor whose fiduciary responsibility is to
701	assist both the trustee and certificateholder hereunder in
702	administrating their responsibilities pursuant to this chapter.
703	(35)(34)"Solicitation" means any communication which
704	directly or implicitly requests an immediate oral response from
705	the recipient.
706	(36)(35)"Statutory accounting" means generally accepted
707	accounting principles, except as modified by this chapter.
708	(37) "Urn" means a receptacle designed to permanently
709	encase cremated remains.
710	Section 13. Section 497.306, Florida Statutes, is created
711	to read:
712	497.306 Standards for grave spaces.--
713	(1) A standard adult grave space shall measure at least 42
714	inches in width and 96 inches in length, except for preinstalled
715	vaults in designated areas. For interments, except cremated
716	remains, the covering soil shall measure no less than 12 inches
717	from the top of the outer burial container, unless such level of
718	soil is not physically possible. In any interment, the family or
719	next of kin may waive the 12-inch coverage minimum.
720	(2)(a) Effective October 1, 2003, and prior to the sale of
721	grave spaces in any undeveloped areas of a licensed cemetery,
722	the cemetery company shall prepare a map documenting the
723	establishment of recoverable internal survey reference markers
724	installed by the cemetery company no more than 100 feet apart in
725	the areas planned for development. The internal reference
726	markers shall be established with reference to survey markers
727	that are no more than 200 feet apart which have been set by a
728	surveyor and mapper licensed under chapter 472 and documented in
729	a certified land survey. Both the map and the certified land
730	survey shall be maintained by the cemetery company and shall be
731	made available upon request to the department or members of the
732	public.
733	(b) The map of the area proposed to be developed shall
734	show:
735	1. The number of grave spaces available for sale.
736	2. The location of each grave space.
737	3. The number designation assigned to each grave space.
738	4. The dimensions of a standard adult grave space.
739	(3) Adult grave spaces established prior to October 1,
740	2003, are not required to meet the standards established under
741	this section for the dimensions or separation of grave spaces.
742	Section 14. Section 497.307, Florida Statutes, is created
743	to read:
744	497.307 Identification of human remains in licensed
745	cemeteries.--On and after October 1, 2003, human remains
746	interred, entombed, scattered, or otherwise placed for final
747	rest at licensed cemeteries shall be identified as follows:
748	(1) Each licensed cemetery shall place on the outer burial
749	container, cremation interment container, or other container, or
750	on the inside of a crypt or niche, a tag or a permanent
751	identifying marker containing the name of the decedent and the
752	date of death, if available. The materials and location of the
753	tag or marker shall be more specifically described by rule of
754	the board.
755	(2) Each licensed cemetery may rely entirely on the
756	identity stated on the burial transit permit or on the
757	identification supplied by a person licensed under chapter 470
758	to establish the identity of the dead human remains delivered by
759	such person for burial and shall not be liable for any
760	differences between the identity shown on the burial transit
761	permit or other identification and the actual identity of the
762	dead human remains delivered by such person and buried in the
763	cemetery.
764	Section 15. Subsections (1) and (4) of section 497.405,
765	Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
766	497.405 Certificate of authority required.--
767	(1)(a) No person, including any cemetery exempt under s.
768	497.003, may sell, advertise to sell, or make an arrangement for
769	a preneed contract without first having a valid certificate of
770	authority.
771	(b) No person, including any cemetery exempt under s.
772	497.003, may sell, advertise to sell, or make an arrangement for
773	services, merchandise, or burial rights on a preneed basis
774	unless such person is authorized pursuant to this chapter to
775	provide such services, merchandise, or burial rights on an at-
776	need basis.
777	(4) The provisions of this section do not apply to
778	religious-institution-owned cemeteries exempt under s.
779	497.003(1)(d), in counties with a population of at least 960,000
780	persons on July 1, 1996, with respect to the sale to the
781	religious institution's members and their families of interment
782	rights, mausoleums, crypts, cremation niches and cremation
783	interment containers, vaults, liners, urns, memorials, vases,
784	foundations, memorial bases, floral arrangements, monuments,
785	markers, engraving, and the opening and closing of interment
786	rights, mausoleums, crypts, and cremation niches and cremation
787	interment containers, if such cemeteries have engaged in the
788	sale of preneed contracts prior to October 1, 1993, and maintain
789	a positive net worth at the end of each fiscal year of the
790	cemetery.
791	Section 16. Subsection (4) of section 497.419, Florida
792	Statutes, is amended to read:
793	497.419 Cancellation of, or default on, preneed
794	contracts.--
795	(4) Each certificateholder shall provide in conspicuous
796	type in its contract that the contract purchaser may cancel the
797	contract and receive a full refund within 30 days afterofthe
798	date of execution of the contract, except for those amounts
799	allocable to any burial rights, merchandise, or services that
800	have been used by the purchaser. The failure to make such
801	provision shall not impair the contract purchaser's right to
802	cancellation and refund as provided in this section.
803	Section 17. Subsection (4) of section 497.436, Florida
804	Statutes, is amended to read:
805	497.436 Inactive and revoked certificateholders.--
806	(4) Upon receipt of the notice, in order to protect the
807	contract purchaser, the board may:
808	(a)shallReview the certificateholder's:
809	1.(a)Trust funds.
810	2.(b)Trust agreements.
811	3.(c)Evidence of all outstanding preneed contracts.
812	(b) Perform other procedures the board deems necessary.
813	Section 18. This act shall take effect October 1, 2003.