103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB1571

 

Introduced 1/31/2023, by Rep. Kelly M. Cassidy

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
410 ILCS 535/21  from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 73-21
755 ILCS 65/5
755 ILCS 65/50
765 ILCS 835/2  from Ch. 21, par. 16

    Amends the Vital Records Act. Provides that an injunction enjoining the issuance of a permit to disinter human remains shall issue only when the person seeking the injunction has rights superior to the person seeking the permit to disinter. Provides that if a person seeking an injunction does not have rights superior to the person seeking the permit to disinter, a court of competent jurisdiction may award costs to the person seeking the permit to disinter, if the court makes a finding that the action seeking the injunction was brought in bad faith. Amends the Disposition of Remains Act. Provides that if a court finds that a person has filed or opposed an action relating to the person's right to control disposition, the court may award costs against the person it finds has acted in bad faith. Amends the Cemetery Protection Act. Provides that any bylaws, rules, and regulations made by the cemetery authority for the government thereof are effective if made publicly available through continuous publication on the cemetery authority's website or on the cemetery authority's social media page. Requires a cemetery authority that does not maintain a website or social media page to provide a copy of the bylaws, rules, and regulations to each person prior to or contemporaneous with the cemetery authority's presentment of any contract or legal agreement for services in relation to the cemetery. Provides that the amendatory Act may be referred to as the Michael Bauer Memorial Act.


LRB103 27276 LNS 53647 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB1571LRB103 27276 LNS 53647 b

1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. References to Act. This Act may be referred to
5as the Michael Bauer Memorial Act.
 
6    Section 5. The Vital Records Act is amended by changing
7Section 21 as follows:
 
8    (410 ILCS 535/21)  (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 73-21)
9    Sec. 21. (1) The funeral director or person acting as such
10who first assumes custody of a dead body or fetus shall make a
11written report to the registrar of the district in which death
12occurred or in which the body or fetus was found within 24
13hours after taking custody of the body or fetus on a form
14prescribed and furnished by the State Registrar and in
15accordance with the rules promulgated by the State Registrar.
16Except as specified in paragraph (2) of this Section, the
17written report shall serve as a permit to transport, bury, or
18entomb the body or fetus within this State, provided that the
19funeral director or person acting as such shall certify that
20the certifying health care professional who, within 12 months
21prior to the date of the patient's death, was treating or
22managing treatment of the patient's illness or condition which

 

 

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1resulted in death has been contacted and has affirmatively
2stated that he or she will sign the medical certificate of
3death or the fetal death certificate. If a funeral director
4fails to file written reports under this Section in a timely
5manner, the local registrar may suspend the funeral director's
6privilege of filing written reports by mail. In a county with a
7population greater than 3,000,000, if a funeral director or
8person acting as such inters or entombs a dead body without
9having previously certified that the certifying health care
10professional who, within 12 months prior to the date of the
11patient's death, was treating or managing treatment of the
12patient's illness or condition that resulted in death has been
13contacted and has affirmatively stated that he or she will
14sign the medical certificate of death, then that funeral
15director or person acting as such is responsible for payment
16of the specific costs incurred by the county medical examiner
17in disinterring and reinterring or reentombing the dead body.
18    (2) The written report as specified in paragraph (1) of
19this Section shall not serve as a permit to:
20        (a) Remove body or fetus from this State;
21        (b) Cremate the body or fetus; or
22        (c) Make disposal of any body or fetus in any manner
23    when death is subject to the coroner's or medical
24    examiner's investigation.
25    (3) In accordance with the provisions of paragraph (2) of
26this Section the funeral director or person acting as such who

 

 

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1first assumes custody of a dead body or fetus shall obtain a
2permit for disposition of such dead human body prior to final
3disposition or removal from the State of the body or fetus.
4Such permit shall be issued by the registrar of the district
5where death occurred or the body or fetus was found. No such
6permit shall be issued until a properly completed certificate
7of death has been filed with the registrar. The registrar
8shall insure the issuance of a permit for disposition within
9an expedited period of time to accommodate Sunday or holiday
10burials of decedents whose time of death and religious tenets
11or beliefs necessitate Sunday or holiday burials.
12    (4) A permit which accompanies a dead body or fetus
13brought into this State shall be authority for final
14disposition of the body or fetus in this State, except in
15municipalities where local ordinance requires the issuance of
16a local permit prior to disposition.
17    (5) A permit for disposition of a dead human body shall be
18required prior to disinterment of a dead body or fetus, and
19when the disinterred body is to be shipped by a common carrier.
20Such permit shall be issued to a licensed funeral director or
21person acting as such, upon proper application, by the local
22registrar of the district in which disinterment is to be made.
23In the case of disinterment, proper application shall include
24a statement providing the name and address of any surviving
25spouse of the deceased, or, if none, any surviving children of
26the deceased, or if no surviving spouse or children, a parent,

 

 

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1brother, or sister of the deceased. The application shall
2indicate whether the applicant is one of these parties and, if
3so, whether the applicant is a surviving spouse or a surviving
4child. Prior to the issuance of a permit for disinterment, the
5local registrar shall, by certified mail, notify the surviving
6spouse, unless he or she is the applicant, or if there is no
7surviving spouse, all surviving children except for the
8applicant, of the application for the permit. The person or
9persons notified shall have 30 days from the mailing of the
10notice to object by obtaining an injunction enjoining the
11issuance of the permit. After the 30-day period has expired,
12the local registrar shall issue the permit unless he or she has
13been enjoined from doing so or there are other statutory
14grounds for refusal. The notice to the spouse or surviving
15children shall inform the person or persons being notified of
16the right to seek an injunction within 30 days. An injunction
17enjoining the issuance of a permit to disinter shall issue
18only when the person seeking the injunction has rights
19superior, according to Section 5 of the Disposition of Remains
20Act, to the person seeking the permit to disinter. If a person
21seeking an injunction does not have rights superior, according
22to Section 5 of the Disposition of Remains Act, to the person
23seeking the permit to disinter, a court of competent
24jurisdiction may award costs, including reasonable attorney's
25fees, to the person seeking the permit to disinter, if the
26court makes a finding that the action seeking the injunction

 

 

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1was brought in bad faith. Notwithstanding any other provision
2of this subsection (5), a court may order issuance of a permit
3for disinterment without notice or prior to the expiration of
4the 30-day period where the petition is made by an agency of
5any governmental unit and good cause is shown for disinterment
6without notice or for the early order. Nothing in this
7subsection (5) limits the authority of the City of Chicago to
8acquire property or otherwise exercise its powers under the
9O'Hare Modernization Act or requires that City, or any person
10acting on behalf of that City, to obtain a permit under this
11subsection (5) when exercising powers under the O'Hare
12Modernization Act. The Illinois Department of Transportation,
13and any person acting on its behalf under a public-private
14agreement entered into in accordance with the Public-Private
15Agreements for the South Suburban Airport Act, is exempt from
16this subsection (5), provided that the Illinois Department of
17Transportation, or any such person, takes reasonable steps to
18comply with the provisions of this subsection (5) so long as
19compliance does not interfere with the design, development,
20operation, or maintenance of the South Suburban Airport or the
21exercise of their powers under the Public-Private Agreements
22for the South Suburban Airport Act.
23(Source: P.A. 102-257, eff. 1-1-22.)
 
24    Section 10. The Disposition of Remains Act is amended by
25changing Sections 5 and 50 as follows:
 

 

 

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1    (755 ILCS 65/5)
2    Sec. 5. Right to control disposition; priority. Unless a
3decedent has left directions in writing for the disposition or
4designated an agent to direct the disposition of the
5decedent's remains as provided in Section 65 of the Crematory
6Regulation Act or in subsection (a) of Section 40 of this Act,
7the following persons, in the priority listed, have the right
8to control the disposition, including cremation or
9disinterment, of the decedent's remains and are liable for the
10reasonable costs of the disposition:
11        (1) the person designated in a written instrument that
12    satisfies the provisions of Sections 10 and 15 of this
13    Act;
14        (2) any person serving as executor or legal
15    representative of the decedent's estate and acting
16    according to the decedent's written instructions contained
17    in the decedent's will;
18        (3) the individual who was the spouse of the decedent
19    at the time of the decedent's death;
20        (4) the sole surviving competent adult child of the
21    decedent, or if there is more than one surviving competent
22    adult child of the decedent, the majority of the surviving
23    competent adult children; however, less than one-half of
24    the surviving adult children shall be vested with the
25    rights and duties of this Section if they have used

 

 

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1    reasonable efforts to notify all other surviving competent
2    adult children of their instructions and are not aware of
3    any opposition to those instructions on the part of more
4    than one-half of all surviving competent adult children;
5        (5) the surviving competent parents of the decedent;
6    if one of the surviving competent parents is absent, the
7    remaining competent parent shall be vested with the rights
8    and duties of this Act after reasonable efforts have been
9    unsuccessful in locating the absent surviving competent
10    parent;
11        (6) the surviving competent adult person or persons
12    respectively in the next degrees of kindred or, if there
13    is more than one surviving competent adult person of the
14    same degree of kindred, the majority of those persons;
15    less than the majority of surviving competent adult
16    persons of the same degree of kindred shall be vested with
17    the rights and duties of this Act if those persons have
18    used reasonable efforts to notify all other surviving
19    competent adult persons of the same degree of kindred of
20    their instructions and are not aware of any opposition to
21    those instructions on the part of one-half or more of all
22    surviving competent adult persons of the same degree of
23    kindred;
24        (6.5) any recognized religious, civic, community, or
25    fraternal organization willing to assume legal and
26    financial responsibility;

 

 

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1        (7) in the case of indigents or any other individuals
2    whose final disposition is the responsibility of the State
3    or any of its instrumentalities, a public administrator,
4    medical examiner, coroner, State appointed guardian, or
5    any other public official charged with arranging the final
6    disposition of the decedent;
7        (8) in the case of individuals who have donated their
8    bodies to science, or whose death occurred in a nursing
9    home or other private institution and the institution is
10    charged with making arrangements for the final disposition
11    of the decedent, a representative of the institution; or
12        (9) any other person or organization that is willing
13    to assume legal and financial responsibility.
14    As used in Section, "adult" means any individual who has
15reached his or her eighteenth birthday.
16    Notwithstanding provisions to the contrary, in the case of
17decedents who die while serving as members of the United
18States Armed Forces, the Illinois National Guard, or the
19United States Reserve Forces, as defined in Section 1481 of
20Title 10 of the United States Code, and who have executed the
21required U.S. Department of Defense Record of Emergency Data
22Form (DD Form 93), or successor form, the person designated in
23such form to direct disposition of the decedent's remains
24shall have the right to control the disposition, including
25cremation, of the decedent's remains.
26(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)
 

 

 

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1    (755 ILCS 65/50)
2    Sec. 50. Disputes. Any dispute among any of the persons
3listed in Section 5 concerning their right to control the
4disposition, including cremation or disinterment, of a
5decedent's remains shall be resolved by a court of competent
6jurisdiction within 30 days of the dispute being filed with
7the court. A cemetery organization or funeral establishment
8shall not be liable for refusing to accept the decedent's
9remains, or to inter, disinter, or otherwise dispose of the
10decedent's remains, until it receives a court order or other
11suitable confirmation that the dispute has been resolved or
12settled. If a court of competent jurisdiction finds that a
13person listed in Section 5 has, in bad faith, filed or opposed
14an action relating to the person's right to control
15disposition, including cremation or disinterment, the court
16may award costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, against
17the person it finds has acted in bad faith.
18(Source: P.A. 101-381, eff. 1-1-20.)
 
19    Section 15. The Cemetery Protection Act is amended by
20changing Section 2 as follows:
 
21    (765 ILCS 835/2)  (from Ch. 21, par. 16)
22    Sec. 2. The cemetery authority is hereby authorized to
23make bylaws by-laws or rules and regulations for the

 

 

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1government thereof, and to make rules regarding the driving of
2cars, motorcycles, carriages, processions, teams, and the
3speed thereof, the use of avenues, lots, walks, ponds, water
4courses, vaults, buildings, or other places within such
5cemetery, the operations and good management in such cemetery,
6the protection of visitors, the protection of employees, and
7for the maintenance of good order and quiet in such cemetery,
8all such rules to be subject to the rights to control the
9disposition of a decedent's remains in accordance with the
10Disposition of Remains Act of interment, entombment, or
11inurnment right owners, or others, owning any interest in such
12cemetery; and all persons found guilty of a violation of such
13rules shall be guilty of a petty offense and shall be punished
14by a fine of not less than $100, nor more than $500 for each
15offense. No judge shall be disqualified from hearing any cause
16that may be brought before him under the provisions of this
17Act, nor shall any person be disqualified from acting as a
18juror in such cause, by reason of any interest or ownership
19they or either of them may have in the interment, entombment,
20or inurnment rights of such cemetery. Any bylaws, rules, and
21regulations made by the cemetery authority for the government
22thereof are effective if made publicly available through
23continuous publication on the cemetery authority's website or
24on the cemetery authority's social media page with a reference
25to and notice of the bylaws, rules, and regulations set forth
26in every contract or legal agreement with any person for

 

 

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1services in relation to the cemetery. However, if the cemetery
2authority does not maintain a website or social media page,
3the cemetery authority shall provide a copy of the bylaws,
4rules, and regulations to each person prior to or
5contemporaneous with the cemetery authority's or its
6representative's presentment of any contract or legal
7agreement for services in relation to the cemetery.
8(Source: P.A. 94-44, eff. 6-17-05.)