CS/HB 49 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to abandoned and historic cemeteries; 2
creating s. 267.21, F.S.; creating the Historic 3
Cemeteries Program within the Division of Historical 4
Resources of the Department of State; designating the 5
State Historic Preservation Officer as the prog ram's 6
director and requiring him or her to hire employees, 7
subject to legislative appropriation; providing the 8
duties and responsibilities of the program; requiring 9
the program to provide grants, subject to legislative 10
appropriation, to certain entities fo r certain 11
purposes; authorizing the division to adopt rules; 12
creating s. 267.22, F.S.; creating the Historic 13
Cemeteries Program Advisory Council within the 14
division; providing for membership, terms, and duties 15
of the council; providing that members shall s erve 16
without compensation but may receive per diem and 17
reimbursement for travel expenses; amending s. 18
497.005, F.S.; revising the definition of the term 19
"legally authorized person" to include a member of a 20
representative community organization; amending s. 21
704.06, F.S.; revising the definition of the term 22
"conservation easement" to include a right or interest 23
in real property which is appropriate to retaining the 24
structural integrity or physical appearance of certain 25
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
cemeteries; authorizing certain entities to acquire 26
conservation easements to preserve certain cemeteries; 27
providing an effective date. 28
29
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 30
31
Section 1. Section 267.21, Florida Statutes, is created to 32
read: 33
267.21 Historic Cemeterie s Program.— 34
(1) The Historic Cemeteries Program is created within the 35
division. The State Historic Preservation Officer shall serve as 36
the director of the program and shall, subject to legislative 37
appropriation, employ three full -time employees to operat e the 38
program. The program shall have the following duties and 39
responsibilities: 40
(a) Serve as the organizational center for recording and 41
updating in the Florida Master Site File records of cemeteries 42
in this state established at least 50 years ago. 43
(b) Develop guidelines for use by state agencies, local 44
governments, and developers in the identification, location, and 45
maintenance of abandoned and historic cemeteries. 46
(c) Serve as an interagency governmental liaison to 47
municipalities, planning departme nts, colleges and universities, 48
and community organizations to facilitate collaboration and the 49
sharing of information relating to abandoned and historic 50
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
cemeteries. 51
(d) Coordinate with the University of South Florida's 52
Black Cemetery Network to facilita te the inclusion of abandoned 53
African-American cemeteries in the Black Cemetery Network. 54
(e) Research, identify, and record abandoned cemeteries, 55
with an emphasis on abandoned African -American cemeteries. 56
(f) When abandoned cemeteries are located, prov ide 57
notification and guidance to relevant persons and assist with 58
efforts to identify relatives and descendants, funeral 59
directors, religious organizations, qualified nonprofit 60
organizations, and property owners. 61
(g) Assist constituents, descendant commu nities, state and 62
federal agencies, local governments, and other stakeholders with 63
inquiries relating to abandoned cemeteries. 64
(h) In coordination with the Department of Education, 65
develop a curriculum relating to abandoned and historic 66
cemeteries, with a focus on citizenship, social responsibility, 67
and history. 68
(i) Establish a priority for the placement of historical 69
markers for erased, forgotten, lost, or abandoned African -70
American cemeteries. 71
(2) The Historic Cemeteries Program shall, subject to 72
legislative appropriation, provide grants to the following 73
entities: 74
(a) Research institutions, colleges and universities, and 75
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
qualified nonprofit organizations, for the purpose of conducting 76
genealogical and historical research necessary to identify and 77
contact the relatives and descendants of persons buried in 78
abandoned African-American cemeteries. 79
(b) Local governments and qualified nonprofit 80
organizations, for the purposes of repairing, restoring, and 81
maintaining abandoned African -American cemeteries. 82
(3) The division may adopt rules to implement this 83
section. 84
Section 2. Section 267.22, Florida Statutes, is created to 85
read: 86
267.22 Historic Cemeteries Program Advisory Council. — 87
(1) The Historic Cemeteries Program Advisory Council, an 88
advisory council as defined in s. 20.03(7), is created within 89
the division and shall consist of members appointed by the 90
Secretary of State after considering the recommendations of the 91
director of the division. The council must be composed of an 92
inclusive group of members who are regionally distributed and 93
representative of communities throughout this state. Members 94
shall serve 4-year staggered terms. As soon as practicable after 95
July 1, 2023, the council shall meet to elect a chair from its 96
membership. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the 97
council shall operate in a manner consistent with s. 20.052. 98
(2) The council shall provide guidance and recommendations 99
to the division regarding the duties and responsibilities of the 100
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Historic Cemeteries Program c reated under s. 267.21. 101
(3) Members of the council shall serve without 102
compensation but may receive per diem and reimbursement for 103
travel expenses pursuant to s. 112.061. 104
Section 3. Subsection (43) of section 497.005, Florida 105
Statutes, is amended to read: 106
497.005 Definitions. —As used in this chapter, the term: 107
(43) "Legally authorized person" means, in the priority 108
listed: 109
(a) The decedent, when written inter vivos authorizations 110
and directions are provided by the decedent; 111
(b) The person desi gnated by the decedent as authorized to 112
direct disposition pursuant to Pub. L. No. 109 -163, s. 564, as 113
listed on the decedent's United States Department of Defense 114
Record of Emergency Data, DD Form 93, or its successor form, if 115
the decedent died while in m ilitary service as described in 10 116
U.S.C. s. 1481(a)(1) -(8) in any branch of the United States 117
Armed Forces, United States Reserve Forces, or National Guard; 118
(c) The surviving spouse, unless the spouse has been 119
arrested for committing against the decease d an act of domestic 120
violence as defined in s. 741.28 that resulted in or contributed 121
to the death of the deceased; 122
(d) A son or daughter who is 18 years of age or older; 123
(e) A parent; 124
(f) A brother or sister who is 18 years of age or older; 125
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(g) A grandchild who is 18 years of age or older; 126
(h) A grandparent; or 127
(i) Any person in the next degree of kinship. 128
129
In addition, the term may include, if no family member exists or 130
is available, the guardian of the dead person at the time of 131
death; the personal representative of the deceased; the attorney 132
in fact of the dead person at the time of death; the health 133
surrogate of the dead person at the time of death; a public 134
health officer; the medical examiner, county commission, or 135
administrator acting und er part II of chapter 406 or other 136
public administrator; a representative of a nursing home or 137
other health care institution in charge of final disposition; or 138
a friend or other person , including a member of a representative 139
community organization, not listed in this subsection who is 140
willing to assume the responsibility as the legally authorized 141
person. Where there is a person in any priority class listed in 142
this subsection, the funeral establishment shall rely upon the 143
authorization of any one legally aut horized person of that class 144
if that person represents that she or he is not aware of any 145
objection to the cremation of the deceased's human remains by 146
others in the same class of the person making the representation 147
or of any person in a higher priority c lass. 148
Section 4. Subsections (1) and (3) of section 704.06, 149
Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 150
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704.06 Conservation easements; creation; acquisition; 151
enforcement.— 152
(1) As used in this section, "conservation easement" means 153
a right or interest in real property which is appropriate to 154
retaining land or water areas predominantly in their natural, 155
scenic, open, agricultural, or wooded condition; retaining such 156
areas as suitable habitat for fish, plants, or wildlife; 157
retaining the structural integrity or physical appearance of 158
sites or properties of historical, architectural, 159
archaeological, or cultural significance , including abandoned 160
and neglected cemeteries that are 50 or more years old ; or 161
maintaining existing land uses and which prohibits or limi ts any 162
or all of the following: 163
(a) Construction or placing of buildings, roads, signs, 164
billboards or other advertising, utilities, or other structures 165
on or above the ground. 166
(b) Dumping or placing of soil or other substance or 167
material as landfill or dumping or placing of trash, waste, or 168
unsightly or offensive materials. 169
(c) Removal or destruction of trees, shrubs, or other 170
vegetation. 171
(d) Excavation, dredging, or removal of loam, peat, 172
gravel, soil, rock, or other material substance in such manner 173
as to affect the surface. 174
(e) Surface use except for purposes that permit the land 175
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or water area to remain predominantly in its natural condition. 176
(f) Activities detrimental to drainage, flood control, 177
water conservation, erosion control, soil c onservation, or fish 178
and wildlife habitat preservation. 179
(g) Acts or uses detrimental to such retention of land or 180
water areas. 181
(h) Acts or uses detrimental to the preservation of the 182
structural integrity or physical appearance of sites or 183
properties of historical, architectural, archaeological, or 184
cultural significance , including abandoned and neglected 185
cemeteries that are 50 or more years old . 186
(3) Conservation easements may be acquired by any 187
governmental body or agency or by a charitable corporation or 188
trust whose purposes include protecting natural, scenic, or open 189
space values of real property, assuring its availability for 190
agricultural, forest, recreational, or open space use, 191
protecting natural resources, maintaining or enhancing air or 192
water quality, or preserving sites or properties of historical, 193
architectural, archaeological, or cultural significance , 194
including abandoned and neglected cemeteries that are 50 or more 195
years old. 196
Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 197