Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2430 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	H.B. No. 2430
	1	+	By: Reynolds, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Miles) H.B. No. 2430
	2	+	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 6, 2019;
	3	+	May 10, 2019, read first time and referred to Committee on State
	4	+	Affairs; May 19, 2019, reported favorably by the following vote:
	5	+	Yeas 9, Nays 0; May 19, 2019, sent to printer.)
	6	+	Click here to see the committee vote
2	7
3	8
	9	+	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
4	10		AN ACT
5	11		relating to requirements in a suit for the removal of human remains
6	12		from a cemetery.
7	13		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	14		SECTION 1. Section 711.004, Health and Safety Code, is
9	15		amended by amending Subsections (c) and (d) and adding Subsection
10	16		(d-1) to read as follows:
11	17		(c) If the consent required by Subsection (a) cannot be
12	18		obtained, the remains may be removed by permission of a district
13	19		court of the county in which the cemetery is located. Before the
14	20		date of application to the court for permission to remove remains
15	21		under this subsection, notice must be given to:
16	22		(1) the cemetery organization operating the cemetery
17	23		in which the remains are interred or if the cemetery organization
18	24		cannot be located or does not exist, the Texas Historical
19	25		Commission;
20	26		(2) each person whose consent is required for removal
21	27		of the remains under Subsection (a); and
22	28		(3) any other person or entity that the court
23	29		subsequently requires to be served.
24	30		(d) For the purposes of Subsection (c) and except as
25	31		provided by this subsection or Subsection (d-1) or (k), personal
26	32		notice must be given not later than the 11th day before the date of
27	33		application to the court for permission to remove the remains, or
28	34		notice by certified or registered mail must be given not later than
29	35		the 16th day before the date of application. In an emergency
30	36		circumstance described by Subsection (l) that necessitates
31	37		immediate removal of remains from a plot, the court shall hear an
32	38		application for permission to remove remains under Subsection (c)
33	39		not later than the first business day after the application is made.
34	40		In an emergency circumstance described by this subsection, personal
35	41		notice may be given on the date the application is made.
36	42		(d-1) If the court subsequently requires an additional
37	43		person or entity to be served under Subsection (c)(3), that
38	44		additional service must be performed not later than the 11th day
39	45		after the date of the judge's order. Service may not be required
40	46		for any court appointed representative or other court appointed
41	47		official.
42	48		SECTION 2. Sections 711.010(b) and (c), Health and Safety
43	49		Code, are amended to read as follows:
44	50		(b) On petition of the owner of the property, a district
45	51		court of the county in which an unknown cemetery is discovered or an
46	52		abandoned cemetery is located may order the removal of any
47	53		dedication for cemetery purposes that affects the property if the
48	54		court finds that the removal of the dedication is in the public
49	55		interest. If a court orders the removal of a dedication of a
50	56		cemetery and all human remains in that cemetery have not previously
51	57		been removed, the court shall order the removal of the human remains
52	58		from the cemetery to:
53	59		(1) a perpetual care cemetery; [or]
54	60		(2) a municipal or county cemetery; or
55	61		(3) any other place on the owner's property that the
56	62		district court finds is in the public interest.
57	63		(c) In addition to any notice required by Section 711.004,
58	64		notice of a petition filed under Subsection (b) must be given to the
59	65		Texas Historical Commission and to the county historical commission
60	66		of the county in which the cemetery is located. The court may
61	67		consult the Texas Historical Commission and the county historical
62	68		commission in making a decision under this section [may intervene
63	69		and become parties to the suit]. The court may also designate or
64	70		appoint any person, party, court appointed representative, or
65	71		official the court considers necessary to assist in determining
66	72		whether the removal is in the public interest.
67	73		SECTION 3. Section 711.036(b), Health and Safety Code, is
68	74		amended to read as follows:
69	75		(b) An owner of land adjacent to a cemetery for which a
70	76		cemetery organization or other governing body does not exist may
71	77		petition a district court of the county in which the cemetery is
72	78		located to remove any human remains and the dedication for all or
73	79		any portion of the cemetery. In addition to the notice required by
74	80		Section 711.004, notice of a petition filed under this subsection
75	81		must be given to the Texas Historical Commission and to the county
76	82		historical commission of the county in which the cemetery is
77	83		located. The court may consult the Texas Historical Commission and
78	84		the county historical commission in making a decision under this
79	85		section [may intervene and become parties to the suit]. The court
80	86		may also designate or appoint any person, party, court appointed
81	87		representative, or official the court considers necessary to assist
82	88		in determining whether the removal is in the public interest.
83	89		Unknown next of kin of deceased persons buried in the cemetery shall
84	90		be served by publication of a notice in a newspaper of general
85	91		circulation in the county in which the cemetery is located, or if
86	92		there is not a newspaper of general circulation in the county, in a
87	93		newspaper of general circulation in an adjacent county. A
88	94		reasonable good faith effort shall be made to remove all remains and
89	95		monuments from the cemetery or that portion of the cemetery for
90	96		which the dedication is to be removed.
91	97		SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
92	98		a suit involving the removal of remains from an abandoned, unknown,
93	99		or unverified cemetery pending in a trial court on the effective
94	100		date of this Act or filed on or after that date. A suit involving
95	101		the removal of remains from an abandoned, unknown, or unverified
96	102		cemetery in which a final order is rendered before the effective
97	103		date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
98	104		order was rendered, and the former law is continued in effect for
99	105		that purpose.
100	106		SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
101	107		a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
102	108		provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
103	109		Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
104	110		Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
105		-	______________________________ ______________________________
106		-	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
107		-	I certify that H.B. No. 2430 was passed by the House on May 3,
108		-	2019, by the following vote: Yeas 143, Nays 0, 1 present, not
109		-	voting.
110		-	______________________________
111		-	Chief Clerk of the House
112		-	I certify that H.B. No. 2430 was passed by the Senate on May
113		-	22, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
114		-	______________________________
115		-	Secretary of the Senate
116		-	APPROVED: _____________________
117		-	Date
118		-	_____________________
119		-	Governor
	111	+	* * * * *