IDFPR Moves Forward with Cemetery Oversight

CHICAGO – Legislators serving on the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) voted earlier today to allow the rules necessary for implementing the Cemetery Oversight Act to take effect.  Once the rules are published in the Illinois Register, the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) will quickly move to make applications for licensure available to thousands of cemeteries and their staff across the state.

“These rules provide the basic protections for Illinois families who bury loved ones in our cemeteries while meeting the concerns of very small cemeteries,” said Brent E. Adams, Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation.  “The safety of the general public and peace of mind for families burying a loved one depend on this law being fully implemented.”

The rules were amended during the summer to recognize that some very small cemeteries, maintained primarily by volunteers, would be minimally regulated and their fees for licensing would be waived.  Other changes in the regulations clarify which cemetery employees require professional licenses and ensure that cemetery registration can be achieved quickly.

The Department first proposed these rules on April 9, 2010, and, after discussions with legislators, cemetery owners and advocates, amended the rules this summer and resubmitted them in their current form.  The licensing and exam process will commence after rules are published.  Even without rules, however, the Department has established a statewide consumer hotline, handled almost 1000 consumer and cemetery industry inquiries and implemented the Illinois Cemetery Oversight Database, which, to date, has recorded more than 20,000 burials.