Bill Text: NY A01605 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relates to the abandonment of cemeteries; notification and assistance.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Vetoed) 2019-11-08 - VETOED MEMO.128 [A01605 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A01605-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          1605
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 15, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  M.  of A. PAULIN, JONES -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions
        AN ACT to amend the not-for-profit corporation law and the town law,  in
          relation to the abandonment of cemeteries
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The not-for-profit corporation law is amended by  adding  a
     2  new section 1506-d to read as follows:
     3  § 1506-d. Cemetery abandonment notification and assistance.
     4    Any  cemetery corporation that shall have insufficient general operat-
     5  ing funds with which to continue operations or  that  does  not  have  a
     6  board  sufficient  to carry on operations of the cemetery, shall provide
     7  notice to the state cemetery board and the governing board of the  muni-
     8  cipality or municipalities in which the cemetery is located at least one
     9  hundred  and  eighty days in advance of the date of expected abandonment
    10  to a municipality.  Upon notification by the cemetery corporation or  as
    11  a result of a review of the financial and corporate status of a cemetery
    12  corporation,  the  state cemetery board shall notify the governing board
    13  of the municipality where such cemetery corporation is located at  least
    14  one  hundred and twenty days in advance of the date of expected abandon-
    15  ment. Prior to abandonment, the state cemetery board shall work with the
    16  cemetery corporation and the governing board or boards  of  the  munici-
    17  pality or municipalities in which the cemetery corporation is located to
    18  assist  in  reconstituting  the board of the cemetery corporation; or to
    19  arrange to provide the cemetery corporation with temporary assistance in
    20  operating the cemetery; or to locate  another  cemetery  corporation  to
    21  take  over  the  cemetery  corporation  seeking abandonment or any other
    22  lawful measure that might prevent abandonment.  In the event  the  ceme-
    23  tery  corporation board is not reconstituted or if the condition of such
    24  abandoned cemetery prevents effective municipal takeover  within  ninety
    25  days  of  abandonment,  the state cemetery board shall appoint, with the
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD07019-01-9
        A. 1605                             2
     1  consent of the governing board of the municipality, a temporary receiver
     2  to manage cemetery operations until such time that the cemetery is in  a
     3  condition  to  be  maintained  or operated by the municipality. Notwith-
     4  standing  any  other  provision  of  law, such funds and expense for the
     5  temporary receiver and repairs of the cemetery shall be a state  expense
     6  allocated  and  approved as outlined in paragraph (h) of section fifteen
     7  hundred seven of this chapter.
     8    § 2. Subparagraph 4 of paragraph (h) of section 1507 of  the  not-for-
     9  profit  corporation  law, as amended by chapter 363 of the laws of 2009,
    10  is amended to read as follows:
    11    (4) Authorization for payments by the fund for maintenance of an aban-
    12  doned cemetery shall be  made  by  the  secretary  of  state  only  upon
    13  approval  by  the  cemetery board of an application by a municipality or
    14  other solvent not-for-profit cemetery corporation for fair  and  reason-
    15  able  expenses  required to be made by the municipality or other solvent
    16  not-for-profit cemetery corporation  for  maintenance  of  an  abandoned
    17  cemetery;  provided,  however, that the cemetery board shall not approve
    18  any such application unless the municipality or other  solvent  not-for-
    19  profit  cemetery  corporation  acknowledges  that the responsibility for
    20  restoration and future care, preservation, and maintenance of such ceme-
    21  tery has been assumed by the municipality or other solvent  not-for-pro-
    22  fit cemetery corporation.  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a
    23  municipality  or other solvent not-for-profit cemetery corporation shall
    24  be permitted to file an additional  application  for  funds  under  this
    25  section, twenty-five years following the date of the initial application
    26  for the repair and maintenance of any structures on the cemetery grounds
    27  only  where such structures were constructed preceding the date of aban-
    28  donment of the cemetery corporation. For the purposes of this paragraph,
    29  such cemetery shall always be deemed an abandoned cemetery.
    30    § 3. Section 291 of the town law is amended by adding a  new  subdivi-
    31  sion 5 to read as follows:
    32    5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no town shall be liable
    33  for  any damages or injuries sustained by any person or property associ-
    34  ated with a cemetery abandoned to the town for any cause of action  that
    35  occurred prior to the takeover of said cemetery by the town and in addi-
    36  tion,  no cause of action for such damages shall be maintained and adju-
    37  dicated by any court in this state which would otherwise have  jurisdic-
    38  tion to adjudicate such claim.
    39    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.