S3024A

The New York State Senate passed legislation amending the Environmental Conservation Law to allow nonprofit memorial land facilities to obtain permits for handling cremated remains, with a vote of 46-16. Sponsored by Sen. Comrie, the bill permits existing memorial land facilities to apply to the Department of Environmental Conservation for permits to handle disposition of cremated remains only, subject to all existing cemetery regulations, zoning laws, and requirements from the Department of Environmental Conservation, Department of Health, and Department of State. The measure includes a conservation easement requirement. Sen. Ashby raised concerns during debate that the bill would allow non-cemetery entities to compete with existing regulated cemeteries without equivalent consumer protections, and questioned whether pricing would be regulated. Sen. Comrie clarified that only nonprofit entities are eligible and that the bill does not create opportunities for for-profit operations. He emphasized that all facilities must comply with existing protections and that a disposition fund would apply to these locations if they went out of business. Sixteen senators voted against the measure, including Ashby, Chu, Helming, Martinez, Mattera, Murray, Myrie, Oberacker, O'Mara, Ortt, Rhoads, Rolison, Tedisco, Walczyk, Weber, and Weik.