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| 3 | 3 | | HB 1577 2025 |
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| 7 | 7 | | CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. |
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| 8 | 8 | | hb1577-00 |
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| 9 | 9 | | Page 1 of 2 |
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| 10 | 10 | | 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 |
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| 14 | 14 | | A bill to be entitled 1 |
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| 15 | 15 | | An act relating to abandoned cemeteries; amending s. 2 |
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| 16 | 16 | | 704.08, F.S.; requiring the state to be granted an 3 |
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| 17 | 17 | | easement for ingress and egress to abandoned 4 |
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| 18 | 18 | | cemeteries on private property for specified purposes; 5 |
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| 19 | 19 | | providing an effective date. 6 |
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| 21 | 21 | | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 8 |
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| 22 | 22 | | 9 |
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| 23 | 23 | | Section 1. Section 704.08, Florida Statutes, is amended to 10 |
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| 24 | 24 | | read: 11 |
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| 25 | 25 | | 704.08 Cemeteries; right of ingress and egress f or 12 |
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| 26 | 26 | | visiting, or maintenance, research, and searches .— 13 |
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| 27 | 27 | | (1) The relatives and descendants of any person buried in 14 |
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| 28 | 28 | | a cemetery shall have an easement for ingress and egress for the 15 |
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| 29 | 29 | | purpose of visiting the cemetery at reasonable times and in a 16 |
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| 30 | 30 | | reasonable manner. The owner of the land may designate the 17 |
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| 31 | 31 | | easement. If the cemetery is abandoned or otherwise not being 18 |
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| 32 | 32 | | maintained, such relatives and descendants may request the owner 19 |
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| 33 | 33 | | to provide for reasonable maintenance of the cemetery, and, if 20 |
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| 34 | 34 | | the owner refuses or f ails to maintain the cemetery, the 21 |
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| 35 | 35 | | relatives and descendants shall have the right to maintain the 22 |
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| 36 | 36 | | cemetery. 23 |
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| 37 | 37 | | (2) If credible evidence supports a determination that 24 |
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| 38 | 38 | | there is an abandoned cemetery located on, underneath, or 25 |
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| 40 | 40 | | HB 1577 2025 |
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| 44 | 44 | | CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. |
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| 45 | 45 | | hb1577-00 |
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| 46 | 46 | | Page 2 of 2 |
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| 47 | 47 | | 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 |
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| 50 | 50 | | |
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| 51 | 51 | | adjacent to land owned by a priva te owner, the state must be 26 |
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| 52 | 52 | | granted an easement for ingress and egress for the purpose of 27 |
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| 53 | 53 | | maintaining and conducting research and noninvasive searches at 28 |
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| 54 | 54 | | such cemetery at reasonable times and in a reasonable manner 29 |
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| 55 | 55 | | after providing the owner with reasonable notice. 30 |
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| 56 | 56 | | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 31 |
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