Bill Text: NY A04790 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Relates to certain duties and responsibilities of cemetery corporations; requires disclosure of the dimensions of spacing between plots, lots, or parts thereof; provides for the filing of consumer complaints.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-29 - print number 4790b [A04790 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-A04790-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4790--B 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY February 23, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. HEVESI -- 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 -- reported and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means -- recommitted to the Committee on Ways and Means 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, in relation to certain duties and responsibilities of cemetery corporations The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (c) of section 1504 of the not-for-profit corpo- 2 ration law, as added by chapter 871 of the laws of 1977, subparagraph 3 2-a as amended and subparagraph 2-b as added by chapter 565 of the laws 4 of 1980, subparagraph 4 as added by chapter 557 of the laws of 1985, and 5 subparagraph 5 as renumbered by chapter 557 of the laws of 1985, is 6 amended and a new paragraph (e) is added to read as follows: 7 (c) Powers and duties of the cemetery board. With respect to any 8 cemetery or cemetery corporation, the cemetery board shall have the 9 following duties and powers: (1) To adopt such reasonable rules and 10 regulations as the cemetery board shall deem necessary for the proper 11 administration of this article. (2) To order any cemetery corporation 12 to do such acts as may be necessary to comply with the provisions of 13 this article or any rule or regulation adopted by the cemetery board or 14 to refrain from doing any act in violation thereof. (2-a) To adopt 15 reasonable rules and regulations to exempt those cemetery corporations 16 from the provisions of paragraph (h) of section fifteen hundred ten of 17 this [chapter] article which because of a limited number of paid employ- 18 ees or appropriate resources are unable to carry out such provisions. 19 (2-b) To adopt reasonable rules and regulations to extend the time peri- 20 od mandated by the provisions of paragraph (h) of section fifteen EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD00846-05-4A. 4790--B 2 1 hundred ten of this [chapter] article when necessary because compliance 2 by a cemetery corporation within such time period is impossible. (3) To 3 enforce its orders by mandamus or injunction in a summary proceeding or 4 otherwise. In connection with such action or proceeding, the attorney 5 general is authorized to take proof, issue subpoenas and administer 6 oaths in the manner provided in the civil practice law and rules. (4) To 7 impose a civil penalty upon a cemetery corporation not exceeding one 8 thousand dollars, after conducting an adjudicatory hearing pursuant to 9 the provisions of paragraph (e) of this section, and consistent with the 10 provisions of the state administrative procedure act, for a violation of 11 or a failure to comply with any provisions contained in this article or 12 any regulation, directive or order of the board, and without the need to 13 maintain a civil action pursuant to [subdivision] subparagraph five of 14 this paragraph. (5) To maintain a civil action in the name of the people 15 of the state to recover a judgment for a money penalty imposed under the 16 provisions of this article. 17 (e) Complaint process. Upon receipt of a consumer complaint form, the 18 division of cemeteries shall forward such complaint to the cemetery 19 corporation involved and contact the consumer no later than the close of 20 business on the day following the date on which the complaint was 21 received. The cemetery corporation shall respond to the division of 22 cemeteries within ten business days after receipt of such consumer 23 complaint. If the initial complaint is not resolved by the cemetery 24 corporation, the consumer may request that the complaint be escalated to 25 the cemetery board for investigation and resolution thereof. When a 26 complaint is escalated, the board may take any action it deems neces- 27 sary, consistent with the powers and duties of the cemetery board pursu- 28 ant to paragraph (c) of this section. Upon completion of its investi- 29 gation, the board shall send a written resolution to the consumer. 30 § 2. Subparagraph 1 of paragraph (e-1) of section 1507 of the not-for- 31 profit corporation law, as added by chapter 608 of the laws of 1985, is 32 amended to read as follows: 33 (1) [A] Any cemetery corporation may, and all cemetery corporations 34 partially or wholly located in a city with a population of one million 35 or more shall, subject to the approval of the cemetery board, establish 36 and maintain a monument maintenance fund. Such a fund is hereby declared 37 to be and shall be held by the cemetery corporation as a trust fund, for 38 the purpose of providing notice if such monuments are damaged or defaced 39 by an act of vandalism and for the restoration of such monuments. Two or 40 more cemetery corporations may establish a joint monument maintenance 41 fund. 42 § 3. Paragraph (a) of section 1510 of the not-for-profit corporation 43 law, as amended by chapter 20 of the laws of 2021, is amended to read as 44 follows: 45 (a) Posting and distribution of rules, regulations, charges and pric- 46 es. The rules, regulations, charges, and prices of goods, lots, plots or 47 parts thereof, including the corporation's regulations of the spacing 48 between plots, lots, or parts thereof, shall be suitably printed and 49 shall be conspicuously posted by the corporation in each of its offices, 50 if any, and conspicuously displayed on any website the corporation main- 51 tains or through which it conducts business. A printed copy of charges 52 and prices of goods, lots, plots or parts thereof shall be made avail- 53 able upon request by any person for up to the actual price of the print- 54 ing of the copy. For each day in which the corporation fails to post or 55 display the rules, regulations, charges and prices, including the corpo- 56 ration's regulations of the spacing between plots, lots, or parts there-A. 4790--B 3 1 of, the corporation shall be subject to a penalty of twenty-five dollars 2 which may be recovered in a civil action by the cemetery board. For each 3 instance in which the corporation fails to make available a copy of the 4 prices of goods, lots, plots, or parts thereof, including the corpo- 5 ration's regulations of the spacing between plots, lots, or parts there- 6 of, to a person who requests such copy, the corporation shall be subject 7 to a penalty of twenty-five dollars which may be recovered in a civil 8 action by the cemetery board. The cemetery board may waive the payment 9 of the penalty or any part thereof. 10 § 4. Paragraph (b) of section 1513 of the not-for-profit corporation 11 law, as added by chapter 871 of the laws of 1977, is amended to read as 12 follows: 13 (b) Prices for burial rights and instruments of conveyance. (1) The 14 directors must fix and determine the prices of the burial lots, plots or 15 parts thereof, and keep a plainly printed copy of the schedules of such 16 prices conspicuously posted in each of the offices of the corporation, 17 open at all reasonable times to inspection, and shall file a schedule of 18 such prices in the office of the cemetery board. (2) Unless its certif- 19 icate of incorporation or by-laws otherwise provide, and subject to its 20 rules and regulations, the corporation shall sell and convey to any 21 person the use of the lots, plots or parts thereof designated on the map 22 filed in the office of the corporation, on payment of the prices so 23 fixed and determined, but need not sell and convey more than one lot, 24 plot or part thereof to any one person. Conveyances of lots, plots and 25 parts thereof shall be signed by the president or vice-president and 26 treasurer or assistant treasurer of the corporation. A written contract 27 for the sale or use of a lot, plot or part thereof shall have attached 28 thereto and made a part thereof a copy of the rules and regulations of 29 the cemetery corporation or such parts of such rules and regulations as 30 relate to the size and placement of monuments, restrictions on plot 31 usage, warranties, obligations of the cemetery corporation and financial 32 obligations, dimensions of spacing between lots, plots, or parts thereof 33 as per the corporation's rules and regulations, and duties of the lot 34 owner. If a lot, plot or part thereof is sold without a written 35 contract, the corporation shall, before any part of the purchase price 36 is paid by the purchaser, deliver to the purchaser a copy of the rules 37 and regulations or such parts thereof as would be required to be 38 attached to a written contract. Nothing in this subdivision shall 39 prevent the subsequent amendment of such rules and regulations to 40 increase the charges for services rendered by the corporation or in 41 other particulars by or with the consent of the cemetery board under 42 section fifteen hundred nine of this article. (3) A cemetery corporation 43 that shall sell a lot, plot or part thereof, in excess of the price 44 shown on the schedule filed in the office of the cemetery board, and any 45 person acting for or on behalf of the cemetery corporation in connection 46 with such sale, shall each forfeit to the people of the state of New 47 York a sum equivalent to three times the excess amount so paid. Such 48 penalty may be recovered in a civil action by the cemetery board. (4) 49 The instrument of conveyance of any burial lot, plot or part thereof 50 shall include the actual amount paid therefor and a description showing 51 the dimensions of the property conveyed, and the plot number, section 52 and block number as they appear on the cemetery map. Such instrument 53 shall also include the dimensions of spacing between plots, lots, or 54 parts thereof as determined by the corporation's rules and regulations. 55 § 5. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 56 have become a law.
