Endowment care cemeteries: examination, investigation, and discipline.

Existing law, the Cemetery and Funeral Act, establishes the Cemetery and Funeral Bureau within the Department of Consumer Affairs and sets forth its powers and duties relating to the licensure and regulation of cemeteries, crematories, funeral establishments, and their personnel. Existing law authorizes a cemetery authority that maintains a cemetery to place its cemetery under endowment care and establish, maintain, and operate an endowment care fund. Under existing law, an endowment care cemetery is defined as one which has deposited in its endowment care fund at the time of or not later than completion of the initial sale specified minimum amounts for plots sold or disposed of. This bill would, over a 3-year period, increase the minimum amounts for each plot sold or disposed of that an endowment care cemetery is required to deposit in its endowment care trust fund, as prescribed. Existing law requires the bureau to conduct a study to obtain information to determine if the endowment care fund levels of each licensee's cemetery are sufficient to cover the cost of future maintenance, as provided, and to report its findings and recommendations to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature by January 1, 2018. This bill would require the bureau to report the above-described findings and recommendations to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature by January 1, 2029. Existing law requires the bureau to examine the endowment care funds of a cemetery authority at least once every 5 years, and under specified circumstances, including if the cemetery authority in charge of the endowment care funds fails to file a required report. Existing law authorizes the bureau to make or cause an investigation of a licensee upon the filing of a complaint. This bill would require the bureau to examine the endowment care funds of a cemetery authority if the bureau receives a valid complaint alleging the authority has engaged in financial misconduct or neglect of duties. Existing law authorizes a court, based upon a finding that a cemetery manager of a private cemetery has ceased to perform specified duties, to appoint a temporary manager to manage the cemetery property and to service the prepaid interments of the private cemetery. This bill would authorize a county in which a private cemetery is located to assume responsibility for the maintenance of the cemetery and to preserve public access to the cemetery, until the court appoints a temporary manager, if a court has not appointed a temporary manager within 6 months of the suspension, revocation, or surrender of the license of a cemetery manager of a private cemetery or the appointment of a temporary manager has expired. The bill would require a county that assumes maintenance responsibilities to provide specified services and would require the county to be reimbursed from the available income in the endowment care fund for the cost of maintenance services rendered. Existing law provides that a licensing entity of the department retains the authority to institute or continue a disciplinary proceeding against a licensee, despite the suspension, expiration, or forfeiture by operation of law of a license, or its surrender without the written consent of the licensing entity, as provided. This bill would require the director to coordinate and assist with any investigation of or action or criminal proceedings against a cemetery licensee and its officers, agents or employees that is conducted by another law enforcement entity, in the event of the cemetery licensee's expiration, suspension, or voluntary surrender of the license, as provided.