Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland House Bill HB711 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	hb0711
6	6
7	7	HOUSE BILL 711
8	8	C2, M3, J2 5lr3207
9	9	CF 5lr3217
10	10	By: Delegates Simmons, J. Long, Taylor, and Woods
11	11	Introduced and read first time: January 27, 2025
12	12	Assigned to: Health and Government Operations
13	13
14	14	A BILL ENTITLED
15	15
16	16	AN ACT concerning 1
17	17
18	18	Office of Cemetery Oversight – Study of Deathcare and Funeral Practices 2
19	19
20	20	FOR the purpose of requiring the Office of Cemetery Oversight, in consultation with the 3
21	21	Maryland Department of Health, the Maryland Department of Labor, and the 4
22	22	Department of the Environment, to conduct a study of the environmental and public 5
23	23	health impacts of deathcare and funeral practices in the State; and generally relating 6
24	24	to a study of deathcare and funeral practices. 7
25	25
26	26	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 8
27	27	That: 9
28	28
29	29	(a) The Office of Cemetery Oversight, in consultation with the Maryland 10
30	30	Department of Health, the Maryland Department of Labor, and the Department of the 11
31	31	Environment, shall conduct a comprehensive study of the impacts of deathcare and funeral 12
32	32	practices on the environment and public health of the State. 13
33	33
34	34	(b) The study shall: 14
35	35
36	36	(1) evaluate deathcare and funeral practices in the State, including 15
37	37	prevalence rates, geographic distribution, and cultural considerations; 16
38	38
39	39	(2) assess the permitting and licensure processes for facilities and 17
40	40	professionals engaged in deathcare and funeral practices; and 18
41	41
42	42	(3) examine trends regarding the use of cremation and ground burials. 19
43	43
44	44	(c) The study conducted shall include the study of the following deathcare and 20
45	45	funeral practices: 21
46	46
47	47	(1) embalming; 22
48	48	2 HOUSE BILL 711
49	49
50	50
51	51	(2) casket and vault or liner burial; 1
52	52
53	53	(3) mausoleum or columbarium interment or inurnment; 2
54	54
55	55	(4) casket only burial; 3
56	56
57	57	(5) natural or green burial without a casket or with a wood casket 4
58	58	alternative; 5
59	59
60	60	(6) cremation or flame cremation; 6
61	61
62	62	(7) alkaline hydrolysis or water cremation; 7
63	63
64	64	(8) resomation or natural water cremation; and 8
65	65
66	66	(9) natural organic reduction or body composting. 9
67	67
68	68	(d) In examining the impacts of the practices listed in subsection (c) of this 10
69	69	section, the study shall include an analysis of: 11
70	70
71	71	(1) the impact of each practice on: 12
72	72
73	73	(i) land use, including resource consumption and biodiversity 13
74	74	implications; 14
75	75
76	76	(ii) soil and water quality, including risks associated with different 15
77	77	types of burial and cremation practices, including scattering cremated remains; 16
78	78
79	79	(iii) air quality, including greenhouse gas emissions, airborne 17
80	80	particulates, and toxic substances; 18
81	81
82	82	(iv) public health, including risk of exposure to hazardous substances 19
83	83	for workers and potential long–term health risks for communities near funeral homes, 20
84	84	crematories, or cemeteries; 21
85	85
86	86	(v) the cost of compliance with environmental standards for 22
87	87	providers; 23
88	88
89	89	(vi) the accessibility and equity in environmentally sustainable 24
90	90	deathcare and funeral service sectors; 25
91	91
92	92	(vii) the potential for job creation and skill development in alternative 26
93	93	deathcare and funeral service sectors; and 27
94	94
95	95	(viii) any opportunities for comprehensive training and use of work 28
96	96	crews to gain skills and support the care and maintenance of cemeteries; and 29
97	97	HOUSE BILL 711 3
98	98
99	99
100	100	(2) permitting and licensure processes, including: 1
101	101
102	102	(i) establishing and operating facilities such as cemeteries, 2
103	103	crematories, and natural burial sites; 3
104	104
105	105	(ii) emerging or alternative deathcare technologies, including 4
106	106	alkaline hydrolysis and natural organic reduction; 5
107	107
108	108	(iii) gaps or inconsistencies in regulatory frameworks related to 6
109	109	environmental and public health protections; 7
110	110
111	111	(iv) oversight and accountability measures to ensure compliance 8
112	112	with environmental and public health standards; and 9
113	113
114	114	(v) opportunities to streamline or improve licensing processes to 10
115	115	support the development of sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. 11
116	116
117	117	(e) The Office of Cemetery Oversight shall: 12
118	118
119	119	(1) conduct site visits to facilities across the State to collect data of 13
120	120	environmental and public health impacts; 14
121	121
122	122	(2) collect data from other states and jurisdictions with existing 15
123	123	regulations or studies on sustainable deathcare and funeral practices to inform the State’s 16
124	124	approach; 17
125	125
126	126	(3) solicit input from trade groups and organizations, such as: 18
127	127
128	128	(i) the Green Burial Council; 19
129	129
130	130	(ii) the Coalition to Protect Maryland Burial Sites; 20
131	131
132	132	(iii) the Funeral Consumer Alliance; 21
133	133
134	134	(iv) the Green Burial Alliance of Maryland; 22
135	135
136	136	(v) organizations representing the funeral industry; 23
137	137
138	138	(vi) environmental advocacy groups; and 24
139	139
140	140	(vii) academic institutions with expertise in environmental science, 25
141	141	public health, and thanatology; and 26
142	142
143	143	(4) incorporate feedback from public stakeholders, including feedback from 27
144	144	culturally and religiously diverse communities received through public hearings or 28
145	145	comment periods. 29
146	146	4 HOUSE BILL 711
147	147
148	148
149	149	(f) On or before December 1, 2025, the Office of Cemetery Oversight shall submit 1
150	150	an interim report to the Governor and, in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State 2
151	151	Government Article, the General Assembly that includes: 3
152	152
153	153	(1) findings regarding environmental and public health impacts; 4
154	154
155	155	(2) an inventory of facilities and practices in the State; and 5
156	156
157	157	(3) any immediate concerns or areas requiring further study. 6
158	158
159	159	(g) On or before July 1, 2026, the Office of Cemetery Oversight shall submit a 7
160	160	final report to the Governor and, in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government 8
161	161	Article, the General Assembly that includes: 9
162	162
163	163	(1) the results of the study; 10
164	164
165	165	(2) a detailed analysis of the environmental, public health, and economic 11
166	166	impacts of each deathcare and funeral practice; 12
167	167
168	168	(3) recommended policy changes, including any new regulatory 13
169	169	frameworks, permitting processes, or incentives for sustainable deathcare and funeral 14
170	170	practices; and 15
171	171
172	172	(4) potential funding or support mechanisms for expanding 16
173	173	environmentally friendly and equitable deathcare options. 17
174	174
175	175	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 18
176	176	1, 2025. 19