Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2371 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	H.B. No. 2371
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to the disposition of burial spaces and abandoned plots in
6	6	certain cemeteries in the possession and control of a municipality.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Section 713.009, Health and Safety Code, is
9	9	amended by amending Subsection (f) and adding Subsections (f-1) and
10	10	(f-2) to read as follows:
11	11	(f) After taking the action described by Subsection (d), the
12	12	municipality or corporation shall continue to maintain the cemetery
13	13	so that it does not endanger the public health, safety, comfort, or
14	14	welfare. Additional burial spaces may not be offered for sale,
15	15	except as provided by Subsection (f-1).
16	16	(f-1) A municipality that has taken possession and control
17	17	of a cemetery under this section for at least 25 years may sell
18	18	additional burial spaces in the cemetery if, after a public
19	19	hearing, the governing body of the municipality by official action
20	20	finds that:
21	21	(1) the cemetery has been consistently maintained in
22	22	accordance with Section 713.011; and
23	23	(2) the sale and use of additional burial spaces in the
24	24	cemetery will not endanger the public health, safety, comfort, or
25	25	welfare.
26	26	(f-2) A municipality shall provide written notice of a
27	27	public hearing required under Subsection (f-1). The notice must:
28	28	(1) describe the municipality's proposed action;
29	29	(2) identify the cemetery that is the subject of the
30	30	hearing by name and location;
31	31	(3) be published in a newspaper of general
32	32	circulation:
33	33	(A) once a week for three consecutive weeks:
34	34	(i) in a county in which the cemetery is
35	35	located; or
36	36	(ii) in the absence of a newspaper in that
37	37	county, in the neighboring county nearest to the cemetery that has a
38	38	newspaper of general circulation; and
39	39	(B) with a final date of publication that is not
40	40	less than one week and not more than two weeks before the date of the
41	41	hearing; and
42	42	(4) be mailed to the Texas Historical Commission not
43	43	less than one week before the date of the hearing.
44	44	SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 713, Health and Safety
45	45	Code, is amended by adding Sections 713.012 and 713.013 to read as
46	46	follows:
47	47	Sec. 713.012. ABANDONED PLOTS IN CERTAIN CEMETERIES IN
48	48	MUNICIPAL POSSESSION AND CONTROL. (a) This section applies only to
49	49	a cemetery for which the governing body of a municipality by
50	50	official action issues the findings described by Section
51	51	713.009(f-1).
52	52	(b) After notice provided in accordance with Subsection (c)
53	53	and a public hearing, the governing body of a municipality may by
54	54	official action declare a plot in a cemetery subject to this section
55	55	as presumed abandoned if:
56	56	(1) the municipality does not have any record of
57	57	ownership or sale of the plot;
58	58	(2) the plot has not been used for interment; and
59	59	(3) the plot is not within a family enclosure or area
60	60	of plots of related persons.
61	61	(c) A municipality shall provide written notice of the
62	62	public hearing required under Subsection (b) that satisfies the
63	63	notice requirements described by Section 713.009(f-2).
64	64	(d) The municipality may combine the notice and hearing
65	65	required under this section with the notice and hearing required
66	66	under Sections 713.009(f-1) and (f-2).
67	67	(e) A municipality has the exclusive right of sepulture in
68	68	an abandoned plot in a cemetery subject to this section and may
69	69	convey that right in the plot.
70	70	(f) A person may rebut the presumption of abandonment by
71	71	submitting to the municipality a deed, certificate of ownership,
72	72	bill of sale, receipt, instrument of conveyance, or other evidence
73	73	of ownership under which the person may claim the exclusive right of
74	74	sepulture in the plot in accordance with Section 711.039.
75	75	Sec. 713.013. APPEAL OF FINDING OF ABANDONMENT. (a) Not
76	76	later than the 10th day after the date the governing body of a
77	77	municipality declares a plot abandoned under Section 713.012, a
78	78	person aggrieved by the declaration or a taxpayer residing in the
79	79	municipality may file with a district court, county court, or
80	80	county court at law of the county in which the cemetery is located a
81	81	verified petition that states the decision is wholly or partly
82	82	illegal and the grounds of the illegality.
83	83	(b) On the filing of the petition, the court may grant a writ
84	84	of certiorari directed to the governing body to review the
85	85	governing body's decision. The writ must require the governing
86	86	body's return to be made and served on the petitioner not later than
87	87	the 10th day after the date the writ is issued, unless otherwise
88	88	extended by the court. Granting of the writ does not stay the
89	89	proceedings on appeal, but on application and after notice to the
90	90	governing body, the court may grant a restraining order.
91	91	(c) The governing body's return must be verified and
92	92	concisely state any pertinent facts that show the grounds of the
93	93	decision under appeal. The governing body is not required to return
94	94	the original documents on which the governing body acted but may
95	95	return certified or sworn copies of the documents or parts of the
96	96	documents as required by the writ.
97	97	(d) If a court determines at the hearing that testimony is
98	98	necessary for proper disposition of the matter, the court may take
99	99	evidence or appoint a referee to take evidence as directed. The
100	100	referee shall report the evidence to the court with the referee's
101	101	findings of fact and conclusions of law. The referee's report
102	102	constitutes a part of the proceedings on which the court makes a
103	103	decision.
104	104	(e) The court may wholly or partly reverse or affirm or
105	105	modify the appealed decision. The court may not assess costs
106	106	against the governing body unless the court determines that the
107	107	governing body acted with gross negligence, bad faith, or malice in
108	108	making the decision.
109	109	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
110	110	______________________________ ______________________________
111	111	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
112	112	I certify that H.B. No. 2371 was passed by the House on April
113	113	14, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 116, Nays 27, 2 present, not
114	114	voting.
115	115	______________________________
116	116	Chief Clerk of the House
117	117	I certify that H.B. No. 2371 was passed by the Senate on May
118	118	9, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1.
119	119	______________________________
120	120	Secretary of the Senate
121	121	APPROVED: _____________________
122	122	Date
123	123	_____________________
124	124	Governor