HB 1641 2003
1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to funeral directing, embalming, and
3	direct disposition; amending s. 470.002, F.S.; revising
4	and providing definitions; amending s. 470.0085, F.S.;
5	extending the embalmer apprentice period; amending s.
6	470.021, F.S.; providing additional requirements to be a
7	direct disposal establishment; providing inspection
8	requirements and criteria; amending s. 470.024, F.S.;
9	revising requirements to be a funeral establishment;
10	amending s. 470.025, F.S.; revising cremation requirements
11	for cinerator facilities relating to simultaneous
12	cremations, body parts, cremation containers, and the
13	cremation chamber; providing exemption from liability for
14	unintentional or incidental commingling of remains under
15	certain conditions; amending s. 470.0255, F.S.; providing
16	for cremation of parts of human bodies incidental to final
17	disposition; amending s. 470.028, F.S.; providing for
18	control and supervision of preneed agents; amending s.
19	470.029, F.S.; extending the filing time for reports of
20	bodies embalmed or handled; amending s. 470.0294, F.S.;
21	expanding authority of legally authorized persons with
22	respect to fetal remains; amending s. 470.031, F.S.;
23	prohibiting any guarantee on the future price of any goods
24	or services; providing penalties; amending s. 470.0355,
25	F.S.; revising requirements for identification of human
26	remains prior to final disposition; providing requirements
27	for identification of human remains in licensed and
28	unlicensed cemeteries and by direct disposal
29	establishments; reenacting s. 470.036, F.S., relating to
30	disciplinary proceedings, to incorporate the amendment to
31	s. 470.031, F.S., in a reference thereto; providing an
32	effective date.
33
34	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
35
36	Section 1. Section 470.002, Florida Statutes, is amended
37	to read:
38	470.002 Definitions.--As used in this chapter:
39	(1)(15)"Alternative container" means a nonmetal
40	receptacle or enclosure which is less expensive than a casket
41	and of sufficient strength to be used to hold and transport a
42	dead human body.
43	(2)(22)"At-need solicitation" means any uninvited contact
44	by a funeral director or direct disposer for the purpose of the
45	sale of funeral services or merchandise to the family or next of
46	kin of a person after that person has died.
47	(3)(2)"Board" means the Board of Funeral Directors and
48	Embalmers.
49	(4) "Body parts" means:
50	(a) Limbs or other portions of the anatomy that are
51	removed from a person or human remains for medical purposes
52	during treatment, surgery, biopsy, autopsy, or medical research;
53	or
54	(b) Human bodies or any portions of human bodies which
55	have been donated to science for medical research purposes.
56	(5)(16)"Casket" means a rigid container which is designed
57	for the encasement of human remains for burial,andwhich is
58	usually constructed of wood or metal, ornamented, and lined with
59	fabric, and which may or may not be combustible.
60	(6)(27)"Centralized embalming facility" means a facility,
61	not physically connected with a funeral establishment, in which
62	embalming takes place.
63	(7)(14)"Cinerator" means a facility where dead human
64	bodies are reduced to a residue, including bone fragments, by
65	direct flame, also known as "cremation," or by intense heat,
66	also known as "calcination."
67	(8) "Closed container" means any container in which
68	cremated remains can be placed and closed in a manner so as to
69	prevent leakage or spillage of the remains.
70	(9) "Cremated remains" means all the remains of the human
71	body recovered after the completion of the cremation process,
72	including processing or pulverization which leaves only bone
73	fragments reduced to unidentifiable dimensions and may include
74	the residue of any foreign matter, including casket material,
75	bridgework, or eyeglasses that were cremated with the human
76	remains.
77	(10)(24) "Cremation" means the technical process, using
78	direct flame and heat, that reduces human remains to bone
79	fragments through heat and evaporation. Cremation includes the
80	processing and usually includes the pulverization of the bone
81	fragmentsincludes any mechanical or thermal process whereby a
82	dead human body is reduced to ashes and bone fragments.
83	Cremation also includes any other mechanical or thermal process
84	whereby human remains are pulverized, burned, recremated, or
85	otherwise further reduced in size or quantity.
86	(11) "Cremation chamber" means the enclosed space within
87	which the cremation process takes place. Cremation chambers
88	covered by these procedures must be used exclusively for the
89	cremation of human remains.
90	(12) "Cremation container" means the container in which
91	the human remains are transported to and placed in the cremation
92	chamber for a cremation. A cremation container should meet
93	substantially all of the following standards:
94	(a) Be composed of readily combustible materials suitable
95	for cremation.
96	(b) Be able to be closed in order to provide a complete
97	covering for the human remains.
98	(c) Be resistant to leakage or spillage.
99	(d) Be rigid enough to be handled with ease.
100	(e) Be able to provide protection for the health, safety,
101	and personal integrity of crematory personnel.
102	(13) "Cremation interment container" means a rigid outer
103	container that, subject to a cemetery’s rules and regulations,
104	is composed of concrete, steel, fiberglass, or some similar
105	material in which an urn is placed prior to being interred in
106	the ground and which is designed to support the earth above the
107	urn.
108	(14)(1)"Department" means the Department of Business and
109	Professional Regulation.
110	(15)(8)"Direct disposal establishment" means a facility
111	registered under this chapter where a direct disposer practices
112	direct disposition.
113	(16)(9)"Direct disposer" means any person registered
114	under this chapter to practice direct disposition in this state.
115	(17)(28)"Disinterment" means removal of a dead human body
116	from earth interment or aboveground interment.
117	(18)(5)"Embalmer" means any person licensed under this
118	chapter to practice embalming in this state.
119	(19)(11)"Final disposition" means the final disposal of a
120	dead human body by earth interment, aboveground interment,
121	cremation, burial at sea, or delivery to a medical institution
122	for lawful dissection if the medical institution assumes
123	responsibility for disposal. "Final disposition" does not
124	include the disposal or distribution of ashes and residue of
125	cremated human remains.
126	(20)(13)"Funeral" or "funeral service" means the
127	observances, services, or ceremonies held to commemorate the
128	life of a specific deceased human being, and at which the human
129	remains are present.
130	(21)(3)"Funeral director" means any person licensed under
131	this chapter to practice funeral directing in this state.
132	(22)(7)"Funeral establishment" means a facility licensed
133	under this chapter where a funeral director or embalmer
134	practices funeral directing or embalming.
135	(23)(12)"Funeral merchandise" or "merchandise" means any
136	merchandise commonly sold in connection with the funeral, final
137	disposition, or memorialization of human remains, including, but
138	not limited to, caskets, outer burial containers, alternative
139	containers, cremation containers, cremation interment
140	containers,urns, monuments, private mausoleums, flowers,
141	shrubs, benches, vases, acknowledgment cards, register books,
142	memory folders, prayer cards, and clothing.
143	(24)(23)"Human remains" or "remains," "dead human body"
144	or "dead human bodies," means the body of a deceased human
145	person for which a death certificate or fetal death certificate
146	is required under chapter 382 and includes the body in any stage
147	of decomposition and the residue of cremated human bodies.
148	(25)(18)"Legally authorized person" means, in the
149	priority listed, the decedent, when written inter vivos
150	authorizations and directions are provided by the decedent, the
151	surviving spouse, unless the spouse has been arrested for
152	committing against the deceased an act of domestic violence as
153	defined in s. 741.28 that resulted in or contributed to the
154	death of the deceased, a son or daughter who is 18 years of age
155	or older, a parent, a brother or sister 18 years of age or over,
156	a grandchild who is 18 years of age or older, or a grandparent;
157	or any person in the next degree of kinship. In addition, the
158	term may include, if no family exists or is available, the
159	following: the guardian of the dead person at the time of death;
160	the personal representative of the deceased; the attorney in
161	fact of the dead person at the time of death; the health
162	surrogate of the dead person at the time of death; a public
163	health officer; the medical examiner, county commission or
164	administrator acting under chapter 245, or other public
165	administrator; a representative of a nursing home or other
166	health care institution in charge of final disposition; or a
167	friend or other person not listed in this subsection who is
168	willing to assume the responsibility as authorized person. Where
169	there is a person in any priority class listed in this
170	subsection, the funeral establishment shall rely upon the
171	authorization of any one legally authorized person of that class
172	if that individual represents that he or she is not aware of any
173	objection to the cremation of the deceased's human remains by
174	others in the same class of the person making the representation
175	or of any person in a higher priority class.
176	(26) "Niche" means a compartment or cubicle for the
177	memorialization or permanent placement of a container or urn
178	containing cremated remains.
179	(27)(19)"Outer burial container" means an enclosure into
180	which a casket is placed, including, but not limited to, a vault
181	made of concrete, steel, fiberglass, or copper, a sectional
182	concrete enclosure, a crypt, or a wooden enclosure.
183	(28)(20)"Personal residence" means any residential
184	building in which one temporarily or permanently maintains his
185	or her abode, including, but not limited to, an apartment or a
186	hotel, motel, nursing home, convalescent home, home for the
187	aged, or a public or private institution.
188	(29)(10)"Practice of direct disposition" means the
189	cremation of human remains without preparation of the human
190	remains by embalming and without any attendant services or rites
191	such as funeral or graveside services or the making of
192	arrangements for such final disposition.
193	(30)(6)"Practice of embalming" means disinfecting or
194	preserving or attempting to disinfect or preserve dead human
195	bodies by replacing certain body fluids with preserving and
196	disinfecting chemicals.
197	(31)(4)"Practice of funeral directing" means the
198	performance by a licensed funeral director of any of those
199	functions authorized by s. 470.0087.
200	(32)(21)"Preneed sales agent" means any person who is
201	registered under chapter 497 to sell preneed burial or funeral
202	service and merchandise contracts or direct disposition
203	contracts in this state.
204	(33) "Processing" means the reduction of identifiable bone
205	fragments after the completion of the cremation process to
206	unidentifiable bone fragments by manual means.
207	(34) "Pulverization" means the reduction of identifiable
208	bone fragments after the completion of the cremation and
209	processing to granulated particles by manual or mechanical
210	means.
211	(35)(25)"Refrigeration facility" means a facility that is
212	not physically connected with a funeral establishment, crematory
213	or direct disposal establishment, that maintains space and
214	equipment for the storage and refrigeration of dead human
215	bodies, and that offers its service to funeral directors and
216	funeral establishments for a fee.
217	(36)(26)"Removal service" means any service that operates
218	independently of a funeral establishment, that handles the
219	initial removal of dead human bodies, and that offers its
220	service to funeral establishments and direct disposal
221	establishments for a fee.
222	(37)(17)"Solicitation" means any communication which
223	directly or implicitly requests an immediate oral response from
224	the recipient.
225	(38) "Temporary container" means a receptacle for cremated
226	remains usually made of cardboard, plastic, or similar material
227	designated to hold the cremated remains until an urn or other
228	permanent container is acquired.
229	(39) "Urn" means a receptacle designed to permanently
230	encase cremated remains.
231	Section 2. Section 470.0085, Florida Statutes, is amended
232	to read:
233	470.0085 Establishment of embalmer apprentice
234	program.--The board may adopt rules establishing an embalmer
235	apprentice program. An embalmer apprentice may perform only
236	those tasks, functions, and duties relating to embalming which
237	are performed under the direct supervision of a licensed
238	embalmer. An embalmer apprentice shall be eligible to serve in
239	an apprentice capacity for a period not to exceed 3 years1 year
240	as may be determined by board rule or for a period not to exceed
241	53years if the apprentice is enrolled in and attending a
242	course in mortuary science or funeral service education at any
243	mortuary college or funeral service education college or school.
244	An embalmer apprentice shall be registered with the board upon
245	payment of a registration fee not to exceed $50.
246	Section 3. Subsections (2) and (5) of section 470.021,
247	Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
248	470.021 Direct disposal establishment; standards and
249	location; registration.--
250	(2) The practice of direct disposition must be engaged in
251	at a fixed location of at least 625 interior contiguous square
252	feet and must maintain or make arrangements for suitable
253	capacity for the refrigeration and storage of dead human bodies
254	handled and stored by the establishment. No person may open or
255	maintain an establishment at which to engage in or hold himself
256	or herself out as engaging in the practice of direct disposition
257	unless such establishment is registered with the board. Any
258	change in location of such establishment shall be reported
259	promptly to the board as prescribed by rule of the board.
260	(5)(a) Each direct disposal establishment shall at all
261	times be subject to the inspection of all its buildings,
262	grounds, and vehicles used in the conduct of its business, by
263	the department, the Department of Health, and local government
264	inspectors and by their agents. The board shall adopt rules
265	which establish such inspection requirements.
266	(b) The board shall set by rule an annual inspection fee
267	not to exceed $100, payable upon application for registration
268	and upon each renewal of such registration.
269	(c) Each cinerator facility shall be inspected prior to
270	the issuance and renewal of its license and shall:
271	1. Maintain one or more retorts for the reduction of dead
272	human bodies.
273	2. Maintain refrigeration which satisfies the standards
274	set by the Department of Health and which contains a sufficient
275	number of shelves for the average daily number of bodies stored,
276	if unembalmed bodies are kept at the site.
277	3. Maintain sufficient pollution control equipment to
278	comply with requirements of the Department of Environmental
279	Protection in order to secure annual approved certification.
280	4. Either have on site or immediately available sufficient
281	sealed containers of a type required for the transportation of
282	bodies as specified in Rule 10D-37.012, F.A.C.
283	5. Maintain the premises in a clean and sanitary
284	condition.
285	6. Have appropriate Department of Environmental Protection
286	permits.
287	7. Retain all signed contracts for a period of at least 2
288	years.
289	Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 470.024, Florida
290	Statutes, is amended to read:
291	470.024 Funeral establishment; licensure.--
292	(1) A funeral establishment shall be a place at a specific
293	street address or location consisting of at least 1,250
294	contiguous interior square feet and must maintain or make
295	arrangements for eithersuitable capacity for the refrigeration
296	and storage of dead human bodies handled and stored by the
297	establishment andora preparation room equipped with necessary
298	ventilation and drainage and containing necessary instruments
299	for embalming dead human bodies or must make arrangements for a
300	preparation room as established by board rule.
301	Section 5. Subsections (6), (13), (14), and (15) of
302	section 470.025, Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection
303	(16) is added to said section, to read:
304	470.025 Cinerator facility; licensure.--
305	(6) No more than one dead human body may be placed in a
306	retort at one time, unless written permission has been received
307	from a legally authorized person for each body. The operator of
308	a cinerator facility shall be entitled to rely on the permission
309	of a legally authorized person to cremate more than one human
310	body.
311	(13) A cinerator facility shall not place human remains or
312	body parts in a retort or cremation chamberunless the human
313	remains are in an alternative container, cremation container,or
314	casket. Human remains may be transported in a cremation
315	containeror stored if they are completely covered, and at all
316	times treated with dignity and respect. Cremation may include
317	the processing and pulverization of bone fragments. Cremated
318	remains may be placed in a temporary container following
319	cremation.None of the provisions contained in this subsection
320	require the purchase of a casket for cremation. This subsection
321	applies to at-need contracts and preneed contracts entered into
322	pursuant to chapter 497 after June 1, 1996.
323	(14) Each cinerator facility shall ensure that all
324	alternative containers, cremation containers,or caskets used
325	for cremation contain no amount of chlorinated plastics not
326	authorized by the Department of Environmental Protection, that
327	they also are composed of readily combustible materials suitable
328	for cremation, able to be closed to provide a complete covering
329	for the human remains, resistant to leakage or spillage, rigid
330	enough for handling with ease, and able to provide for the
331	health, safety, and personal integrity of the public and
332	crematory personnel.
333	(15) The board shall adopt, by rule, criteria for
334	acceptable cremation andalternative containers.
335	(16) The operator of a cinerator facility shall establish
336	written procedures for the removal of remains and bone
337	fragments, to the extent possible, resulting from the cremation
338	of a human body and the postcremation processing, shipping,
339	packing, or identifying of those remains. If an operator follows
340	these procedures, the operator is not liable for the
341	unintentional or incidental commingling of human remains and
342	bone fragments resulting from more than one cremation cycle or
343	from postcremation processing, shipping, packing, or identifying
344	of those remains. A copy of the procedures shall be available,
345	upon request, to the department and legally authorized persons.
346	Section 6. Section 470.0255, Florida Statutes, is amended
347	to read:
348	470.0255 Cremation; procedure required.--
349	(1) At the time of the arrangement for a cremation
350	performed by any person licensed pursuant to this chapter, the
351	person contracting for cremation services shall be required to
352	designate his or her intentions with respect to the disposition
353	of the cremated remains of the deceased in a signed declaration
354	of intent which shall be provided by and retained by the funeral
355	or direct disposal establishment. A cremation may not be
356	performed until a legally authorized person gives written
357	authorization for such cremation. The cremation must be
358	performed within 48 hours after a specified time which has been
359	agreed to in writing by the person authorizing the cremation.
360	(2) With respect to any person who intends to provide for
361	the cremation of the deceased, if, after a period of 120 days
362	from the time of cremation the cremated remains have not been
363	claimed, the funeral or direct disposal establishment may
364	dispose of the cremated remains. Such disposal shall include
365	scattering them at sea or placing them in a licensed cemetery
366	scatter garden or pond or in a church columbarium or otherwise
367	disposing of the remains as provided by rule of the department
368	or board.
369	(3) Pursuant to the request of a legally authorized person
370	and incidental to final disposition, cremation may be performed
371	on parts of human remains. This subsection does not authorize
372	the cremation of body parts as defined in s. 470.002.
373	Section 7. Section 470.028, Florida Statutes, is amended
374	to read:
375	470.028 Preneed sales; registration of agents; control and
376	supervision of agents.--
377	(1) All sales of preneed funeral service contracts or
378	direct disposition contracts shall be made pursuant to chapter
379	497.
380	(2) No person may act as an agent for a funeral
381	establishment or direct disposal establishment with respect to
382	the sale of preneed contracts unless such person is registered
383	pursuant to chapter 497.
384	(3) Each licensee or registrant shall be subject to
385	discipline if his or her agent violates any provision of this
386	chapter applicable to such licensee or registrant as established
387	by board rule.
388	(4)(a) The funeral director in charge of a funeral
389	establishment shall be responsible for the control and
390	activities of the establishment's preneed agents.
391	(b) The direct disposer in charge or a funeral director
392	acting as a direct disposer in charge of a direct disposal
393	establishment shall be responsible for the control and
394	activities of the establishment's preneed agents.
395	Section 8. Subsection (1) of section 470.029, Florida
396	Statutes, is amended to read:
397	470.029 Reports of cases embalmed and bodies handled.--
398	(1) Each funeral establishment, direct disposal
399	establishment, cinerator facility, and centralized embalming
400	facility shall report on a form prescribed and furnished by the
401	department the name of the deceased and such other information
402	as may be required with respect to each dead human body embalmed
403	or otherwise handled by the establishment or facility. Such
404	forms shall be signed by the embalmer who performs the
405	embalming, if the body is embalmed, and the funeral director in
406	charge of the establishment or facility or by the direct
407	disposer who disposes of the body. The board shall prescribe by
408	rule the procedures in submitting such documentation. Reports
409	required by this subsection shall be filed by the 20th10thday
410	of each month for final dispositions handled the preceding
411	month.
412	Section 9. Subsection (1) of section 470.0294, Florida
413	Statutes, is amended to read:
414	470.0294 Additional rights of legally authorized
415	persons.--
416	(1) In addition to any other common law or statutory
417	rights a legally authorized person may otherwise have, that
418	person may authorize a funeral director or direct disposer
419	licensed under this chapter to lawfully dispose of fetal remains
420	in circumstances when a fetal death certificate is not issued
421	under chapter 382, including for fetal death of less than 20
422	weeks' gestation. A person licensed under chapter 470 is not
423	liable for damages as a result of following the instructions of
424	the legally authorized person in connection with the final
425	disposition of fetal remains in circumstances in which a fetal
426	death certificate is not issued under chapter 382 or in
427	connection with the final disposition of a dead human body.
428	Section 10. Section 470.031, Florida Statutes, is amended
429	to read:
430	470.031 Prohibitions; penalties.--
431	(1) No person may:
432	(a) Practice funeral directing, embalming, or direct
433	disposition unless the person holds an active license or
434	registration under this chapter.
435	(b) Use the name or title "funeral director," "embalmer,"
436	or "direct disposer" when the person has not been licensed or
437	registered pursuant to this chapter.
438	(c) Represent as his or her own the license or
439	registration of another.
440	(d) Give false or forged evidence to the board, a member
441	thereof, or the department for the purpose of obtaining a
442	license or registration.
443	(e) Use or attempt to use a license or registration which
444	has been suspended or revoked.
445	(f) Knowingly employ unlicensed persons in the practice of
446	funeral directing, embalming, or direct disposing.
447	(g) Knowingly conceal information relative to violations
448	of this chapter.
449	(h) Operate an unlicensed cinerator facility.
450	(i) Except as provided for in chapter 497, guarantee the
451	price of goods and services at a future date.
452	(2) Any person who violates the provisions of this section
453	commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as
454	provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
455	Section 11. Section 470.0355, Florida Statutes, is amended
456	to read:
457	470.0355 Identification of human remains.--
458	(1) PRIOR TO FINAL DISPOSITION.--
459	(a)(1)The licensee or registrant in charge of the final
460	disposition of dead human remains shall, prior to final
461	disposition of such dead human remains, affix on the ankle or
462	wrist of the deceased, andorin the casket or alternative
463	container or cremation container, proper identification of the
464	dead human remains. The identification or tag shall be encased
465	in or consist of durable and long-lasting material containing
466	the name, date of birth, and date of death, and social security
467	numberof the deceased, if available. If the dead human remains
468	are cremated, proper identification shall be placed in the
469	container or urn containing the remains.
470	(b)(2)Any licensee or registrant responsible for removal
471	of dead human remains to any establishment, facility, or
472	location shall ensure that the remains are identified by a tag
473	or other means of identification that is affixed to the ankle or
474	wrist of the deceased at the time the remains are removed from
475	the place of death or other location.
476	(c)(3)Any licensee or registrant may rely on the
477	representation of a legally authorized person to establish the
478	identity of dead human remains.
479	(2) IN UNLICENSED CEMETERIES.--Effective October 1, 2003,
480	the identification of human remains interred in an unlicensed
481	cemetery shall be the responsibility of the licensed funeral
482	establishment in charge of the funeral arrangements for the
483	deceased person. The licensed funeral establishment in charge of
484	the funeral arrangements for the interment in an unlicensed
485	cemetery of human remains shall place on the outer burial
486	container, cremation internment container, or other container or
487	on the inside of a crypt or niche a tag or permanent identifying
488	mark containing the name of the decedent and the date of death,
489	if available. The materials and locations of the tag or mark
490	shall be more specifically described by the rule of the board.
491	(3) IN LICENSED CEMETERIES.--Effective October 1, 2003,
492	human remains at licensed cemeteries shall be identified as
493	follows:
494	(a) Each licensed cemetery shall place on the outer burial
495	container, cremation interment container, or other container or
496	on the inside of a crypt or niche a tag or permanent identifying
497	marker containing the name of the decedent and the date of
498	death, if available. The materials and the location of the tag
499	or marker shall be more specifically described by rule of the
500	board.
501	(b) Each licensed cemetery may rely entirely on the
502	identity stated on the burial transit permit or on the
503	identification supplied by a person licensed under chapter 470
504	to establish the identity of the dead human remains delivered by
505	such person for burial and shall not be liable for any
506	differences between the identity shown on the burial transit
507	permit or identification and the actual identity of the dead
508	human remains delivered by such person and buried in the
509	cemetery.
510	(4) DIRECT DISPOSAL ESTABLISHMENTS.--Direct disposal
511	establishments shall establish a system of identification of
512	human remains received which shall be designed to track the
513	identity of the remains from the time of receipt until delivery
514	of the remains to the authorized persons. This is in addition to
515	the requirements for identification of human remains set forth
516	in subsection (1). A copy of the identification procedures shall
517	be available, upon request, to the department and legally
518	authorized persons.
519	Section 12. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment
520	to section 470.031, Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto,
521	paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 470.036, Florida
522	Statutes, is reenacted to read:
523	470.036 Disciplinary proceedings.--
524	(1) The following acts constitute grounds for which the
525	disciplinary actions in subsection (2) may be taken:
526	(a) Violation of any provision of s. 455.227(1) or s.
527	470.031.
528	Section 13. This act shall take effect October 1, 2003.