HBA-CCH H.B. 426 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 426 By: Tillery Public Health 2/20/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, the Texas Funeral Service Commission (commission) has no authority to regulate cemeteries in Texas. House Bill 426 provides the commission with the regulatory authority to register cemeteries and investigate complaints. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Funeral Service Commission in SECTION 1 (Sections 711.102, 711.107, 711.109, and 711.111, Health and Safety Code) and in SECTION 2 of this bill. ANALYSIS House Bill 426 amends the Health and Safety Code to create provisions for the registration of cemeteries. H.B. 426 prohibits a person from operating a cemetery without a cemetery operator's certificate of registration. To apply for a certificate, a person must file an application with the Texas Funeral Service Commission (commission). The bill specifies the information an applicant must submit, the terms of certificate renewal, and the requirements for updating a change in information. The bill also specifies that a certificate of registration is not transferable. The commission is required to charge each applicant for registration or renewal a fee not to exceed $100. Cemeteries operated by religious societies or denominations are exempt from the fee. The bill requires the commission to adopt rules necessary to ensure compliance with the provisions of this bill, and to establish methods for directing complaints. The bill requires the commission to investigate complaints and explain remedies to the complainant. The bill also requires the commission to notify the parties to a complaint, at least quarterly until the final disposition of the complaint, of the status of the complaint unless the notice would jeopardize an undercover investigation. At the request of the commission, the attorney general is required to file suit against a person who violates or threatens to violate the provisions relating to cemeteries. The civil penalty is not to exceed $1,000 for a single violation or $25,000 for multiple violations. The commission is also authorized to recover specified fees and expenses. A person commits a Class A misdemeanor if the person knowingly operates or attempts to operate a cemetery in violation of this bill or interferes with the investigation of an offense. A private or family cemetery is exempt from the provisions of this bill if it is not operated for profit, or meets any exemption criteria established by commission rule. H.B. 426 requires the commission, before January 1, 2002, to adopt rules establishing the registration process and provides that the registration requirement does not apply to a person before January 1, 2003. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.