Date of enactment: December 6, 2023
2023 Senate Bill 440 Date of publication*: December 7, 2023
2023 WISCONSIN ACT 84
AN ACT to amend 979.10 (1) (b); and to create 979.10 (1) (ae), 979.10 (1) (am) and 979.10 (1) (as) of the statutes;
relating to: creation of a cremation permit application form.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in
senate and assembly, do enact as follows:
SECTION 1. 979.10 (1) (ae) of the statutes is created
to read:
979.10 (1) (ae) The department of health services
shall design a cremation permit application form for a
person to use when applying for a cremation permit
under par. (a). The department shall include in the form
a place for a coroner or medical examiner to state that he
or she has viewed the corpse that is the subject of the per-
mit and made personal inquiry into the cause and man-
ner of death under sub. (2) and is of the opinion that no
further examination or judicial inquiry is necessary.
SECTION 2. 979.10 (1) (am) of the statutes is created
to read:
979.10 (1) (am) If the coroner or medical examiner
of a county requires applicants for cremation permits to
use an application form to apply for a cremation permit,
a person who applies for a cremation permit in that
county shall use the cremation permit application form
designed under par. (ae) to apply for the cremation per-
mit.
SECTION 3. 979.10 (1) (as) of the statutes is created
to read:
979.10 (1) (as) Once completed by a coroner or
medical examiner, the cremation permit application
form designed under par. (ae) may constitute a crema-
tion permit issued under par. (a) if authorized by the
coroner or medical examiner of the county in which the
cremation permit is issued.
SECTION 4. 979.10 (1) (b) of the statutes is amended
to read:
979.10 (1) (b) A coroner or medical examiner shall
include in any cremation permit issued under par. (a) a
statement that he or she has viewed the corpse which that
is the subject of the permit and made personal inquiry
into the cause and manner of death under sub. (2) and is
of the opinion that no further examination or judicial
inquiry is necessary. Unless further examination or
judicial inquiry is necessary, a coroner or medical exam-
iner shall issue a cremation permit under par. (a) within
24 hours of viewing the corpse or submission of the
medical certification under s. 69.18 (2), whichever is
later.
SECTION 5.0Nonstatutory provisions.
(1) The department of health services shall deter-
mine when the department completes the design of the
cremation permit application form under S. 979.10 (1)
(ae) and shall notify the legislative reference bureau of
that date. The legislative reference bureau shall publish
a notice in the Wisconsin Administrative Register that
specifies the date the design of the form is complete.
* Section 991.11, WISCONSIN STATUTES: Effective date of acts. “Every act and every portion of an act enacted by the legislature over the governor’s
partial veto which does not expressly prescribe the time when it takes effect shall take effect on the day after its date of publication.” − 2 −2023 Wisconsin Act 84 2023 Senate Bill 440
SECTION 6.0Initial applicability.
(1) The treatment of s. 979.10 (1) (ae), (am), and (as)
first applies to a death or the discovery of a death that
occurs on the effective date of this subsection.
(2) The treatment of s. 979.10 (1) (b) first applies to
a death or the discovery of a death that occurs on the
effective date of this subsection.
SECTION 7.0Effective dates. This act takes effect on
the day after publication, except as follows:
(1) The treatment of s. 979.10 (1) (ae), (am), and (as)
and SECTION 6 (1) of this act take effect on the date speci-
fied in the notice published in the Wisconsin Administra-
tive Register under SECTION 5 (1) of this act.