LRB-3061/1
TKK:wlj:pg
2007 - 2008 LEGISLATURE
October 11, 2007 - Introduced by Senators Plale, Lassa, Olsen, Roessler and
Lazich, cosponsored by Representatives
Kaufert, Sinicki, A. Ott, Owens,
Kerkman, Nygren, Newcomer and A. Williams. Referred to Committee on
Labor, Elections and Urban Affairs.
SB288,1,6
1An Act to amend 157.062 (9), 157.08 (5), 157.11 (9g) (a) 1. c., 157.19 (2) (b) to (d),
2157.19 (4) (intro.), 157.19 (5) (a), 157.19 (5) (b), 157.62 (2) (a) and (c), 157.625
3(3), 440.91 (1) (a), 440.91 (1) (c), 440.91 (6m), 440.92 (2) (a) 4. a., 440.92 (7) and
4440.92 (10); and
to create 440.08 (2) (a) 21m. and 440.91 (1m) of the statutes;
5relating to: regulation of and registration requirements for certain cemetery
6authorities, cemetery associations, and cemetery merchandise.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill makes a number of changes in the laws governing cemetery
associations and cemetery authorities.
Trustees of care funds and preneed trust funds
Under current law, a cemetery authority may not change the trustee of a care
fund or a preneed trust fund without written approval from the Department of
Regulation and Licensing (DRL). DRL must establish rules governing approval of
a change of a trustee. DRL must also oversee the management of care funds held by
a cemetery authority and approve the investment of certain funds. This bill transfers
these responsibilities from DRL to the Cemetery Board (board).
Licensure and registration of certain cemeteries
Under current law, with limited exceptions, any cemetery authority that
operates a cemetery that is five acres or more in size, that sells 20 or more cemetery
lots or mausoleum spaces at a cemetery during a calendar year, or that has $100,000
or more in preneed trust fund accounts for a cemetery must be licensed by the board.
Cemetery authorities that are operated by a municipality; church; religious,
fraternal, or benevolent organization; or incorporated college of a religious order are
not required to be licensed.
This bill requires any cemetery authority having $100,000 or more in any trust
fund accounts, rather than just preneed trust fund accounts, to be licensed by the
board. This bill also requires any cemetery authority that operates a cemetery that
is less than five acres in size, that sells fewer than 20 cemetery lots or mausoleum
spaces at a cemetery during a calendar year, or that has less than $100,000 in trust
fund accounts for a cemetery to register that cemetery with the board. Cemetery
authorities that are operated by a municipality; church; religious, fraternal, or
benevolent organization; or incorporated college of a religious order are not required
to register with the board.
Reporting requirements
Under current law, a cemetery association must submit certain information
about the cemetery association to the Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) to
obtain the powers of a corporation. However, a cemetery association that is not
required to be licensed by the board and a cemetery association that is not organized
or conducted for pecuniary profit (nonprofit cemetery association) must instead
submit the information to the office of the register of deeds of the county in which the
cemetery is located. This bill requires a nonprofit cemetery association to submit
information about the cemetery association to DFI instead of to the register of deeds.
This bill also requires a cemetery association that is not required to be registered by
the board to submit information about the cemetery association to the office of the
register of deeds of the county in which the cemetery is located.
Under current law, a cemetery authority must submit an annual report to DRL.
Current law exempts cemetery authorities that are not required to be licensed by the
board (exempt cemetery authority) from the reporting requirement. Current law
also exempts cemetery authorities that are not organized or conducted for pecuniary
profit (nonprofit cemetery authority) from the reporting requirement. This bill
eliminates the exemption from the reporting requirement for nonprofit cemetery
authorities. The bill creates an exemption from the reporting requirement for a
cemetery authority that is not required to be registered with the board. This bill also
requires cemetery authorities that are subject to the reporting requirement to
submit the report to the board instead of to DRL.
Deposit and investment of care funds and preneed trust funds
With certain exceptions, current law regulates the deposit, investment, and
withdrawal of care funds and preneed trust funds by a cemetery authority. Current
law exempts exempt cemetery authorities and nonprofit cemetery authorities from
this regulation. This bill eliminates the exemption from regulation for nonprofit
cemetery authorities. The bill creates an exemption from regulation for cemetery
authorities that are not required to be registered with the board.
Sale or encumbrance of cemetery land
Under current law, before a cemetery authority may sell or encumber cemetery
land, the cemetery authority must notify the board in writing of the proposed sale.
The board has 60 days to object to the sale or encumbrance if the board determines
that the cemetery authority will not be financially solvent or that the rights and
interests of the cemetery lots and mausoleum spaces will not be adequately protected
if the sale or encumbrance occurs. Current law provides an exemption from the
notification requirement for a cemetery authority that is not required to be licensed
and that is not organized or conducted for pecuniary profit. This bill exempts from
the notification requirement a cemetery authority that is not required to be
registered. This bill also eliminates the requirement that a cemetery authority may
not be organized or conducted for pecuniary profit in order to be exempt from the
notification requirement.
Regulation of warehouses
Under current law, DRL regulates warehouses; a "warehouse" is defined as a
place of storage for cemetery merchandise sold under a preneed sales contract.
Persons wishing to own or operate a warehouse must seek approval from DRL. A
preneed seller who sells cemetery merchandise stored in a warehouse not located on
the property of the preneed seller must provide the purchaser of a preneed sales
contract with the name, address, and telephone number of the warehouse and inform
the purchaser that the warehouse is approved by DRL. This bill transfers the
regulation of warehouses to the board and requires a preneed seller who sells
cemetery merchandise stored in a warehouse not located on the property of the
preneed seller to inform the purchaser that the warehouse is approved by the board.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
SB288, s. 1
1Section
1. 157.062 (9) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,3,82
157.062
(9) Exemptions for certain
nonprofit cemeteries. In lieu of
3delivering a certification, resolution
, or copy of proceedings to the department of
4financial institutions under sub. (1), (2)
, or (6) (b), a cemetery association that is not
5required to be
registered licensed under s. 440.91 (1)
and that is not organized or
6conducted for pecuniary profit or registered under s. 440.91 (1m) shall deliver the
7certification, resolution
, or copy of proceedings to the office of the register of deeds
8of the county in which the cemetery is located.
SB288, s. 2
9Section
2. 157.08 (5) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,4,4
1157.08
(5) Subsections (1) and (2) (b) do not apply to a religious society
2organized under ch. 187, and sub. (2) (b) does not apply to a cemetery authority that
3is not required to be licensed under s. 440.91 (1)
and that is not organized or
4conducted for pecuniary profit or registered under s. 440.91 (1m).
SB288, s. 3
5Section
3. 157.11 (9g) (a) 1. c. of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,4,96
157.11
(9g) (a) 1. c. If not invested as provided in subd. 1. a. or b., otherwise
7deposited by the cemetery authority in an investment approved by the
department 8cemetery board if the care funds are segregated and invested separately from all
9other moneys held by the cemetery authority.
SB288, s. 4
10Section
4. 157.19 (2) (b) to (d) of the statutes are amended to read:
SB288,4,1511
157.19
(2) (b) The cemetery authority may not change the trustee of a care fund
12under s. 157.11 (9g) that is deposited under this section or of a care fund under s.
13157.12 (3), and the financial institution may not release any portion of the principal
14amount of the care fund, without the
department's
cemetery board's written
15approval.
SB288,5,316
(c) Upon request of the financial institution, the preneed seller, as defined in
17s. 440.90 (8), shall furnish the financial institution with a copy of the preneed sales
18contract. Except as provided in s. 440.92 (2) (c), (f) and (j) and (5), preneed trust
19funds, and any interest or dividends that have accumulated on the preneed trust
20funds, may not be withdrawn until all obligations under the preneed sales contract
21have been fulfilled. The financial institution is not responsible for the fulfillment of
22any part of the preneed sales contract, except that the financial institution shall
23release the preneed trust funds, and any interest or dividends that have
24accumulated on the preneed trust funds, as provided by the terms of the preneed
25sales contract. The trustee of a preneed trust fund may not be changed without the
1department's cemetery board's written approval. If the trustee or account number
2of a preneed trust fund is changed, the cemetery authority shall notify the
3department cemetery board in writing within 30 days after the change.
SB288,5,114
(d) The
department cemetery board shall promulgate rules establishing
5reasonable requirements and standards for the approval of changes under pars. (b)
6and (c). For approval of changes under par. (b), the rules shall require the cemetery
7authority to submit evidence that the rights and interests of the beneficiary of the
8care fund will be adequately protected if the change is approved. For approval of
9changes under par. (c), the rules shall require the trustee to submit evidence that the
10rights and interests of the purchaser under the preneed sales contract will be
11adequately protected if the change is approved.
SB288, s. 5
12Section
5. 157.19 (4) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,5,1513
157.19
(4) (intro.) The
department
cemetery board may promulgate rules
14allowing funds invested under this section to be deposited with a financial institution
15located outside this state.
SB288, s. 6
16Section
6. 157.19 (5) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,5,2317
157.19
(5) (a) This section does not apply to care funds under s. 157.11 (9g) that
18are deposited with a city or county as provided under s. 157.11 (9g) (a), to care funds
19of a cemetery for which a certification under s. 157.63 is effective, to preneed trust
20funds of a cemetery for which a certification under s. 440.92 (9) is effective, or to care
21funds or preneed trust funds of a cemetery authority that is not required to be
22licensed under s. 440.91 (1)
and that is not organized or conducted for pecuniary
23profit or registered under s. 440.91 (1m).
SB288, s. 7
24Section
7. 157.19 (5) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,6,7
1157.19
(5) (b) If the
department cemetery board determines that care funds
2under s. 157.11 (9g) that have not been deposited with a city or county as provided
3in s. 157.11 (9g) (a) are not being properly segregated from other moneys held by the
4cemetery authority or that those care funds are not being properly invested as
5required in s. 157.11 (9g) (a), the
department cemetery board may require the
6cemetery authority to deposit those care funds with a financial institution for
7investment under this section.
SB288, s. 8
8Section
8. 157.62 (2) (a) and (c) of the statutes are amended to read:
SB288,6,149
157.62
(2) (a) Except as provided in ss. 157.625 and 157.63 (1), every cemetery
10authority shall file an annual report with the
department cemetery board. The
11report shall be made on a form prescribed and furnished by the
department cemetery
12board. The report shall be made on a calendar-year basis unless the
department 13cemetery board, by rule, provides for other reporting periods. The report is due on
14the 60th day after the last day of the reporting period.
SB288,6,1715
(c) All records relating to accountings of trust funds described under par. (b) 3.
16to 7. and maintained by the department
and by the cemetery board are confidential
17and are not available for inspection or copying under s. 19.35 (1).
SB288, s. 9
18Section
9. 157.625 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,6,2119
157.625
(3) Section 157.62 does not apply to a cemetery authority that is not
20required to be licensed under s. 440.91 (1)
and that is not organized or conducted for
21pecuniary profit or registered under s. 440.91 (1m).
SB288, s. 10
22Section
10. 440.08 (2) (a) 21m. of the statutes is created to read:
SB288,6,2423
440.08
(2) (a) 21m. Cemetery authority, registered: December 15 of each
24even-numbered year; $10.
SB288, s. 11
25Section
11. 440.91 (1) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,7,8
1440.91
(1) (a) Any cemetery authority that operates a cemetery that is 5 acres
2or more in size, that sells 20 or more cemetery lots or mausoleum spaces at a cemetery
3during a calendar year, or that has $100,000 or more in
preneed trust fund accounts
4for a cemetery shall apply to the board for a license for that cemetery. A cemetery
5authority that operates more than one cemetery shall apply for a separate license for
6each cemetery that is 5 acres or more in size and for each cemetery at which it sells
720 or more burial spaces or at which it has $100,000 or more in
preneed trust fund
8accounts.
SB288, s. 12
9Section
12. 440.91 (1) (c) of the statutes is amended to read:
