Section:
S 750.
Declaration of policy.
The legislature hereby
finds and declares that the relationships that humans develop with
other members of the animal kingdom that are taken into our homes
and kept as pets are unique and special. These relationships can
enrich our lives and increase our happiness. Even after the death
of a pet, human attachment to the memory of the pet often remains
very strong and many people feel the need to memorialize their love
for their animal by burying their pet in a pet cemetery. Pet cemeteries,
their managers and owners have a special responsibility to their
customers who have
entrusted their pets` remains with them. These pet cemeteries have
a duty to act in an ethical and lawful manner to prevent grieving
pet owners from experiencing further any emotional pain or financial
manipulation. Perpetrations of fraud against grieving pet owners
are unconscionable.
The legislature further finds and declares
that the people of this state have a vital interest in the establishment,
maintenance and
preservation of pet cemeteries and pet crematoriums and the proper
operation of the businesses and individuals which own and manage
the same. This article is determined an exercise of the police powers
of this state to protect the well-being of our citizens, to promote
the public welfare, to promote the health of the public and to prevent
pet cemeteries and pet crematoriums from falling into disrepair
and dilapidation and becoming a burden upon the community.
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S 750-a. Definitions.
As used in this article, unless the context requires
otherwise:
1. "Person" means an individual, corporation,
company, partnership, municipality, not-for-profit corporation or
any other entity
whatsoever.
2. "Licensee" means a person as herein
defined licensed to engage in the business of operating a pet cemetery
or pet crematorium under this article.
3. "To engage for a fee in the business
of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium" means and refers
to a person who holds himself or herself out directly or indirectly,
as being able, or who offers or undertakes, by any means or method,
to dispose of pet remains by earth burial, entombment, inurnment,
cremation or other means.
4. "License fee" and "renewal
fee" mean the fees required to accompany an application for
issuance of any license, including any
temporary, apprentice or renewal license, pursuant to this article.
Such fee shall be non-refundable.
5. "Pet cemetery" means any land, place,
structure, facility or building provided by any person for a fee,
whether or not for profit,
to veterinarians or members of the general public for use, or reservation
for use, for the permanent interment or inurnment above or below
ground of pet remains. Provided, however, this definition shall
not apply to:
(a) rendering plants licensed pursuant to article
five-C of the agriculture and markets law, or
(b) a landfill or other disposal facility at
which solid waste, or its residue after treatment, is intentionally
placed and at which,
solid waste shall remain indefinitely.
6. "Pet crematorium" means any land,
place, structure, facility or building provided by any person for
a fee, whether or not for profit, to veterinarians or members of
the general public for the cremation of pets. However, a pet crematorium
shall not provide for permanent interment or inurnment of pet remains.
Provided, however, this definition shall not apply to facilities
designed for resource recovery as defined in section 27-0701 of
the environmental conservation law. Provided further, that it shall
not include any disposal facility regulated under title fifteen
of article twenty-seven of the environmental conservation law that
is primarily
engaged in incineration of medical waste.
7. "Pet" means any domestic animal
that has been adapted or tamed to live in intimate association with
people but is not limited to, dogs, cats, rodents, fish, birds,
snakes, turtles, lizards, frogs and rabbits.
8. "Pet owner" means the person who
is listed as the owner of the pet in veterinary records or pet cemetery
or crematorium records or his or her agent or employee. In the event
that such pet owner is a minor then a parent or legal guardian or
his or her agent or employee shall be deemed the pet owner for the
purposes of the pet disposal form required in section seven hundred
fifty-s of this article.
9. "Individual burial" means the interment
of a single pet`s remains in a separate grave. However, nothing
in this section shall prevent the interment of more than one pet
in a grave with the written consent of the pet owner.
10. "Mass burial" means the interment
of pet remains communally in a grave containing more than one pet.
11. "Individual cremation" means the
cremation of a single pet`s remains in a separate receptacle that
allows the pet`s cremains to remain separate from the cremains of
other pets.
12. "Mass cremation" means the cremation
of pets communally in a receptacle containing more than one pet.
13. "Veterinarian" means a person licensed
to practice the profession of veterinary medicine as defined by
section sixty-seven
hundred one of the education law.
14. "Entombment" means the placement
of a pet in a grave or tomb.
15. "Inurnment" means the placement
of pet cremains in a grave, urn or tomb.
16. "Land used in agricultural production"
means such lands as defined in subdivision four of section three
hundred one of the
agriculture and markets law.
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S 750-b. License required.
On and after July thirty-first, nineteen hundred
ninety-three, no person shall engage for a fee in the business of
operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium or hold himself or herself
out as being able so to do unless he or she is licensed therefor
pursuant to this article. Nothing herein shall prohibit a person
licensed in accordance with the provisions of this article from
employing individuals to assist in the operation of a pet cemetery
or pet crematorium.
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S 750-c. Powers of the secretary
of state.
The secretary of state shall inspect periodically
all licensed pet cemeteries and pet
crematoriums. The cost of such inspection shall not be charged to
the pet cemeteries or crematoriums. In addition to the powers and
duties elsewhere prescribed in this article, the secretary of state
shall have power:
1. To appoint an adequate number of assistants,
inspectors and other employees as may be necessary to carry out
the provisions of this article, to prescribe their duties, and to
fix their compensation within the amount appropriated therefor.
2. To investigate applicants for licenses under
this article.
3. To keep records of all licenses issued, suspended
or revoked.
4. To conduct a physical inspection of all grounds
and buildings of any pet cemetery or pet crematorium periodically
or upon receiving a complaint.
5. To conduct a financial audit of all business
records, trust fund records and pet disposal forms for any pet cemetery
or pet
crematorium.
6. To issue a subpoena for persons or records
deemed appropriate to an investigation or any other action taken
pursuant to this article.
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S 750-d. Rules and regulations.
1. With respect to pet cemeteries and pet crematoriums,
the department of state shall have power to adopt such rules and
regulations not inconsistent with the provisions of this article,
as may be necessary with respect to the form and content of applications
for licenses, the reception thereof, the investigation of applicants
and their qualifications, the operation of pet cemeteries and pet
crematoriums whose licenses to operate such enterprises are suspended,
revoked or not renewed, and the other matters incidental or appropriate
to his powers and duties as prescribed by this article and for the
proper administration and
enforcement of the provisions of this article, and to amend or repeal
any of such rules and regulations.
2. With respect to pet disposal for a fee, whether
by earth burial, entombment, inurnment, cremation, or otherwise,
by a veterinarian, pet cemetery or pet crematorium, the department
of state shall have the power to adopt such rules and regulations
not inconsistent with the provisions of this article, as may be
necessary with respect to the form and content of pet disposal forms,
registration of disposals by pet cemeteries or pet crematoriums,
and the other matters incidental or appropriate to his powers and
duties as prescribed by this article and for the proper administration
and enforcement of the provisions of this article, and to amend
or repeal any of such rules and regulations.
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S 750-e. License; application.
1. Any person desiring a license to engage in
the business of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium under
this article may make application to the secretary of state therefor.
The application shall be subscribed by the applicant and affirmed
by him or her as true under the penalties of perjury. Such application
shall be in a form as the secretary of state shall prescribe setting
forth:
(a) The name and address of the applicant: if
an individual, the name under which he or she intends to conduct
business; if a
partnership, the name and business address of each member thereof,
and the name under which business is to be conducted; if a corporation;
the name of the corporation and the name and business address of
each stockholder of the corporation holding stock interest of more
than ten per centum.
(b) The place or places, including the complete
address or addresses where the business is to be conducted.
(c) A summary of all relevant experience of all
persons listed in paragraph (a) of this subdivision in the operation
of a cemetery, pet cemetery, crematorium, pet crematorium and/or
the management of funds.
(d) Satisfactory evidence of good moral character.
(e) Such further information as the secretary
of state may prescribe by rule or regulation.
2. The secretary of state shall not issue a license
to any person who:
(a) has had their license to operate a pet cemetery
or pet crematorium suspended or revoked by the secretary of state;
or
(b) has been convicted within the last five years
of a felony under the laws of this state involving fraud, bribery,
perjury, or theft or
has been convicted under the laws of any other state or of the United
States of a criminal offense which, if committed and prosecuted
in this state, would constitute a similar felony under such laws
of this state.
3. Any person who has had an application for
a license rejected by the secretary of state may appeal such determination
pursuant to section seven hundred fifty-i of this article.
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S 750-f. Licenses; display;
renewal; duplicates.
1. All licenses shall be for a period of two years.
2. No license shall be assignable or transferable
except as hereinafter provided.
3. A license to conduct the business of operating
a pet cemetery or pet crematorium issued to an individual may be
assigned or transferred for the remainder of the license period
to a partnership or corporation if such individual is a member of
such partnership or an officer of such corporation at the time of
such assignment or transfer. A license issued to a partnership may
be assigned or transferred for the remainder of the license period
to any one member of such partnership, provided he obtains the consent
of all of the other members of such partnership. A license issued
to a corporation may be assigned or transferred for the remainder
of the license period to any officer of the corporation, provided
he obtains the consent of all of the other officers of such corporation.
The application for such transfer or assignment must be accompanied
by the requirements of section seven hundred fifty-e of this article
and by proof satisfactory to the department that the requirements
herein provided have been complied with. No assignment or transfer
shall become effective unless and until the endorsement has been
made on the face of the license by the department and such license,
so endorsed, has been returned to the assignee or transferee. All
such endorsements shall be made without payment of any fee. A bona
fide purchaser of such business from the holder of the license thereof
may continue to
use the license of the seller from the date of the sale, provided
there is endorsed on the face thereof the name of the purchaser,
the date of the sale, and the signature of the seller and the purchaser;
and provided further within five days from the date of the sale,
an application, in accordance with the provisions of this article,
shall be presented by the purchaser to the secretary of state for
a license to conduct the business of operating a pet cemetery or
pet crematorium. Such license shall be valid until the purchaser`s
license application is either granted or denied by the secretary
of state.
4. A license to conduct the business of operating
a pet cemetery or pet crematorium issued to an individual or to
a partnership may be used after the death of the licensed individual
or co-partner by his next of kin or duly appointed administrator
or executor in the name of the estate from the date of death of
such individual or co-partner, provided that there is endorsed upon
the face of the license after the name of the decedent the word
"deceased", the date of death and the name of the next
of kin, administrator or executor under whose authority the license
is being used, provided that within thirty days from the date of
death of the licensee, an application, in accordance with the provisions
of this article, shall be presented by the next of kin, administrator
or executor to the secretary of state for a license to conduct the
business of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium. Such license
shall be valid until the next of kin`s, administrator`s or executor`s
license application is either granted or denied by the secretary
of state.
5. A license to conduct the business of operating
a pet cemetery or pet crematorium shall be conspicuously posted
upon the premises where the licensee is engaged in the business
of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium.
6. Any license which has not been suspended or
revoked, may, upon the payment of the renewal fee prescribed by
this article, be renewed for additional periods of two years from
its expiration, upon the filing of an application for such renewal,
on a form to be prescribed by the secretary of state.
7. Any person failing to file application and
fee for renewal of a license to conduct the business of operating
a pet cemetery or pet
crematorium within forty-five days immediately following the expiration
of his or her last license shall pay an additional fee of
sixty dollars, and if he or she fails to file application and fee
for renewal within ninety days he or she shall be ineligible for
such
license until he or she shall have again met the requirements set
forth in this article.
8. A duplicate license may be issued for one
lost, destroyed or mutilated upon application therefor on a form
prescribed by the
secretary of state and the payment of the fee prescribed therefor
by this article. Each such duplicate license shall have the word
"duplicate" stamped across the face thereof and shall
bear the same number as the one it replaces.
9. Notice in writing shall be given the secretary
of state within thirty days at his or her office in Albany by the
holder of a license
to conduct the business of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium
of any change in address of the business or residence of the person
engaged in the business of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium
together with the return of license, whereupon a properly signed
endorsement will be made on the face of the license as to such change
and the license then returned to the licensee. A change of address
by a licensee without such notice and endorsement of license shall
operate to cancel the license.
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S 750-g. Fees.
1. The fee for a license to engage in the business
of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium shall be one hundred
fifty dollars. For each renewal thereof, the fee shall be one hundred
fifty dollars.
2. The fee for issuing a duplicate license in
substitution for one lost, destroyed or mutilated shall be twenty-five
dollars.
3. The fee for changing a name or address shall
be ten dollars.
4. The fees hereinabove set forth shall be those
for licenses issued for the license period of two years or fraction
of such period.
5. No fees listed in subdivisions one, two, three
or four of this section shall be charged to any municipality seeking
a license to
operate a pet cemetery or pet crematorium.
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S 750-h. Denial of license
application and suspension and revocation of licenses.
1. An application for a license under this article
may be denied or a license to engage in the business of operating
a pet cemetery or pet crematorium may be suspended or revoked, by
the secretary of state, for any one or more of the following causes:
(a) Fraud or bribery in securing a license;
(b) The making of any false statement as to a
material matter in any application or other statement or certificate
required by or pursuant to this article;
(c) Incompetency in the operation of a pet cemetery
or pet crematorium;
(d) Failure to display the license as provided
in this article;
(e) Violation of any provision of this article,
or of any rule or regulation adopted hereunder;
(f) Conviction of a crime involving fraud, theft,
perjury or bribery or other cause which would permit disqualifications
from receiving a license upon the original application;
(g) Failure to retain all pet disposal forms
for a period of two years following receipt;
(h) Failure to comply with the duties of a pet
cemetery owner or operator as set forth in section seven hundred
fifty-v of this
article; and
(i) Conviction of a violation of article twenty-six
of the agriculture and markets law involving cruelty to animals.
2. Whenever the license to engage in the business
of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium is revoked, such
license shall not be reinstated or reissued until after the expiration
of a period of five years from the date of such revocation and the
secretary of state approves the license application pursuant to
section seven hundred fifty-e of this article.
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S 750-i. Hearing on charges;
decision.
1. No license shall be suspended or revoked nor
shall any fine or reprimand be imposed until after a hearing had
before an officer or employee of the department of state designated
for such purpose by the secretary of state, upon notice to the licensee
of at least ten days. The notice shall be served either personally
or by registered mail and shall state the date and place of hearing
and set forth the ground or grounds constituting the charges against
the licensee. The licensee shall have the opportunity to be heard
in his defense either in person or by counsel and may produce witnesses
and testify in his behalf. A stenographic record of the hearing
shall be taken and preserved. Within ten days after a hearing a
licensee shall receive a stenographic record of the hearing upon
payment of fifty percent of the cost of preparation of such record.
The hearing may be adjourned upon a showing of good cause at least
five days before the hearing, in writing, to a hearing officer.
The person conducting the hearing shall make a written report of
his findings and a recommendation to the secretary of state for
decision. The secretary of state shall review such findings and
the recommendation and, after due deliberation, shall issue an order
accepting, modifying or rejecting such recommendation and dismissing
the charges or suspending or revoking the license or in lieu thereof
imposing a fine or reprimand upon the licensee.
2. Any person who has had their application for
a license rejected shall be entitled to a hearing before an officer
or employee of the department of state designated for such purpose
by the secretary of state, upon notice to such person of at least
ten days. Notice shall be served either personally or by registered
mail and shall state the date and place of hearing and set forth
the ground or grounds constituting the rejection of such application
for license. The applicant shall have the opportunity to be heard
in his or her defense either in person or by counsel and may produce
witnesses and testify on his or her own behalf. A stenographic record
of the hearing shall be taken and preserved. Within ten days after
a hearing an applicant shall receive a stenographic record of the
hearing upon payment of fifty percent of the cost of the preparation
of such record. The hearing may be adjourned upon a showing of good
cause at least five days before the hearing, in writing, to a hearing
officer. The person conducting the hearing shall make a written
report of his or her findings and a recommendation to the secretary
of state for decision. The secretary of state shall review such
findings and the recommendation and, after due deliberation, shall
issue an order accepting, modifying or rejecting such recommendation
and either grant a license or reject the license application.
3. For the purpose of this article, the secretary
of state or any officer or employee of the department of state designated
by him or
her, may administer oaths, take testimony, subpoena witnesses and
compel the production of books, papers, records and documents deemed
pertinent to the subject of investigation.
4. Strict rules of evidence do not apply to hearings
held pursuant to this article.
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S 750-j. Judicial review.
The action of the secretary of state in suspending,
revoking or refusing to issue or renew a license, or imposing a
fine or reprimand on the holder thereof may be reviewed by a proceeding
brought under and pursuant to article seventy-eight of
the civil practice law and rules.
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S 750-k. Violations and penalties.
Any person not licensed pursuant to this article
who shall directly or indirectly engage in the business of operating
a pet cemetery or pet crematorium or hold himself or herself out
to the public as being able so to do, or who shall violate any of
the provisions of this article, or having had his license suspended
or revoked, shall continue to engage in the business of operating
a pet cemetery or pet crematorium or who, without a license to engage
in the business of operating a pet cemetery or pet crematorium,
directly or indirectly employs, permits or authorizes an unlicensed
person to engage in the business of operating a pet cemetery or
pet crematorium, shall for the first offense be guilty of a violation
and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not
more than five hundred dollars or by imprisonment for a term of
not more than fifteen days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
If the conviction is for an offense committed after the first conviction
of such person under this article, such person shall be guilty of
a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by
a fine of not more than two thousand five hundred dollars or by
imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or by both such
fine and imprisonment. Each violation of this article shall be deemed
a separate offense.
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S 750-l. Official acts used
as evidence.
The official acts of the secretary of state,
department of state and department of environmental conservation
shall be prima facie evidence of the facts therein and shall be
entitled to be received in evidence in all actions at law and other
legal proceedings in any court or before any board, body or officer.
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S 750-m. Dedication of moneys
derived from operation of article.
All moneys derived from the operation of this
article shall on or before the tenth day of each month be paid into
the pet cemetery and pet crematorium inspection and licensing fund
established by section ninety-seven-nn of the state finance law.
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S 750-n. Dedication of real
property for pet cemetery purposes.
1. The owner of any real property used or to be
used for a pet cemetery shall file, or cause to be filed, in the
office of the clerk or
recorder of the county in which the real property is located, a
dedication restricting the real property to be used only for such
purposes as are usual and customary for the operation of a pet cemetery.
Such person shall additionally file a certified copy of such dedication,
together with notation of the date, time, book and page of filing
by the clerk or recorder of said county, with the secretary of state.
Such filing with the secretary of state shall additionally include
a copy of a survey map and appropriate zoning approvals as may be
reasonably required by the secretary of state.
2. The owner or operator of every pet cemetery
shall keep adequate records of all purchasers of space for pet remains
within the grounds of such pet cemetery.
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S 750-o. Removal of dedication.
Upon the filing of a dedication restricting real
property for the operation of a pet cemetery, such dedication may
only be amended or removed by order of the supreme court of the
county where the pet cemetery is located. Such petition for amendment
or removal of dedication shall include written consent by all persons
who purchased or otherwise are entitled to rights of disposal or
rights to continuing care of a pet grave in that portion of the
pet cemetery for which the dedication is sought to be amended or
removed. If the portion of the pet cemetery for which the dedication
is sought to be amended or removed includes pet remains,
such pet remains must be removed, upon the written consent of all
persons who purchased or are otherwise entitled to rights of disposal
or rights to continuing care of a pet grave, their heirs or assigns,
with the removal to be entirely at the cost of the owner of the
pet cemetery. The court, upon proof of diligent efforts and as determined
by the court, may dispense with the written consent of any person
who purchased or is otherwise entitled to rights of disposal whose
whereabouts, identity or heirs or assigns are unknown. In the event
that the court has dispensed with any person`s written consent under
this section, the court may make a determination as to the consideration
appropriate for such consent and order that such monies be deposited
with the court, which shall then be paid to such person upon appropriate
proof of claim. If the premises are a pet cemetery, such petition
may additionally include an environmental audit if required by the
court, which audit shall identify any environmental problems caused
by the pet cemetery activity, including an identification of pet
disposal sites. If the environmental audit identifies any environmental
problem, it shall additionally include a plan for the correction
or remediation of such problems, including financial, human and
other resources estimates, projected time schedules for the completion
of the corrective and remedial actions, with the court to make any
order on the petition conditional upon the completion of such corrective
and remedial action or upon the deposit with the court with such
money as determined necessary for such remediation or correction.
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S 750-p. Area requirements
for pet cemeteries.
A pet cemetery which commences operations on or
after the effective date of this article and which provides for
the permanent interment of pets shall consist of not less than five
contiguous acres of real property in total area, inclusive of any
structures, facilities, or buildings situated thereon and used for
the business purposes of the pet cemetery. The secretary of state
may grant a waiver of the minimum size limit based on factors including
the number of above-ground entombments, the number of remains buried
and the nature of the surrounding community. Nothing contained in
this section shall restrict any town, village or city
from enacting any local law which provides for an area requirement
greater than as set forth herein.
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S 750-q. Maintenance fees for
pet cemeteries.
1. A pet cemetery owner may charge a permanent
maintenance endowment fee for the care of the pet cemetery, which
if charged, shall be placed by the pet cemetery owner into a permanent
maintenance endowment care or similar trust fund.
2. In lieu of a permanent maintenance endowment
fee, the operator of a pet cemetery and a pet owner may enter into
a contract for care of the pet cemetery on an annual basis. The
pet owner then shall be charged an annual maintenance fee which
shall be paid in the manner described below. However, only one contract
for annual maintenance shall be entered into per gravesite and shall
state specifically the amount of the annual maintenance fee to be
paid each year. The contract shall also state that failure to pay
these annual fees can result in the disinterment of the pet.
(a) The annual maintenance fee, billed each calendar
year shall be placed by the pet cemetery owner in the general account
of the pet cemetery to be used for pet cemetery operation and maintenance
during the succeeding years. For the purposes of this section and
section seven hundred fifty-r of this article, the term pet cemetery
operation and maintenance shall mean all costs incurred to operate
and maintain a pet cemetery including salaries and bonuses for employees,
officers and directors, but shall not include any fines or penalties
imposed by the secretary of state or other agency or court.
(b) If the annual maintenance fee is not paid
within ninety days of the date of which it is due, the pet cemetery
owner shall notify the pet owner in writing that such fee is due
and payable. If such annual maintenance fee is not paid within ninety
days of such writing, the disposal rights or rights to continuing
care of a pet grave of the pet owner shall terminate.
(c) If the annual maintenance fee is not paid
within one hundred eighty days of the date of which it is due, the
disposal rights of a pet owner shall then terminate and the pet
cemetery owner may at anytime thereafter remove such pet and if
removed dispose of remains by mass cremation or mass burial.
(d) Nothing in this section shall prevent a pet
owner from prepaying annual maintenance fees for any number of years
in advance.
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S 750-r. Endowment care or
similar trust funds.
1. A pet cemetery which commenced operations prior
to the effective date of this article shall establish an endowment
care or similar trust fund, the balance of which shall not be less
then twelve thousand dollars, by January first, nineteen hundred
ninety-five. The secretary of state may grant a waiver to the provisions
of this subdivision if an endowment care or similar trust fund is
established and twelve thousand dollars is placed in such fund within
a reasonable amount of time not to exceed ten years from the effective
date of this article and the provisions of this section will present
a significant financial hardship to the pet cemetery owner or operator.
2. A pet cemetery which commences operations
on or after the effective date of this article, shall, prior to
the acceptance of any
moneys as annual maintenance fees, establish an endowment care or
similar trust fund for the permanent operation and maintenance of
the pet cemetery, in an amount of not less than twelve thousand
dollars.
3. The fiduciary holding such endowment care
or similar trust fund shall have such power to invest such fund
as set forth in section 11-2.2 of the estates, powers and trusts
law. The interest earnings of such trust fund shall be used exclusively
for the operation and maintenance of such pet cemetery. Any distribution
of principal of such option and trust fund shall only be upon order
of the supreme court of the county where the pet cemetery is located,
for good cause and exclusively for the operation and benefit of
such pet cemetery. Unless such distribution of principal shall be
as part of a removal of dedication for such pet cemetery, such order
shall additionally make adequate provision for the permanent maintenance
of the pet cemetery.
4. A pet cemetery, owned and operated by a not-for-profit
corporation that has in excess of one million dollars in its endowment
care or similar trust fund, may use any surplus income in such trust
fund above and beyond its costs for pet cemetery operation and maintenance
in any manner allowed by the not-for-profit corporation`s charter
or by-laws, provided that the use of such surplus does not endanger
the integrity of such trust fund.
5. A pet cemetery, owned and operated by a not-for-profit
corporation that is a humane society may be granted a waiver of
the
provisions of this section by the secretary of state if the secretary
determines that the interests of the pet owners will be adequately
protected and the provisions of this section present a significant
financial hardship to the pet cemetery owner.
6. Such trust funds are not invalid by reason
of any indefiniteness or uncertainty of the persons designated as
beneficiaries, nor shall they be invalid as violating any existing
rule against perpetuities.
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S 750-s. Pet disposal forms.
1. Each person who gives to a veterinarian or
a pet cemetery owner or pet crematorium owner a pet for disposal
shall be provided by such veterinarian or pet cemetery owner or
pet crematorium owner with a pet disposal disclosure document, in
form approved by the secretary of state, which shall set forth the
alternative methods of pet disposal, the cost of each such method
of pet disposal, if available, and the nature of or place in which
each method of disposal will be carried out. The veterinarian or
the pet cemetery owner or the pet crematorium owner, as the case
may be, shall give to the person who completes the form a copy of
the form and retain a copy of said form. If the person completing
the form chooses to have the pet disposed of by a pet cemetery or
pet crematorium and makes the arrangements therefor through a veterinarian,
the veterinarian shall provide the person with the name, location
and telephone number of the pet cemetery or pet crematorium so that
the person may obtain information about the pet cemetery or pet
crematorium. The veterinarian shall also ensure that a copy of the
pet disposal form accompanies the pet when it is removed from the
veterinarian`s office.
2. A veterinarian or pet cemetery operator may
complete a pet disposal form with the oral consent of the pet owner.
Such oral
consent shall be witnessed and a record of such consent and the
completed pet disposal form shall be retained in the veterinarian`s
records. A copy of such completed pet disposal form shall be sent
to the pet owner if requested.
3. If a pet owner is unwilling or unable to complete
a pet disposal form then a veterinarian may complete the pet disposal
form if two attempts are made to contact the pet owner. However,
at least one attempt shall be made in writing and sent by first
class mail. If the veterinarian does complete the pet disposal form
without the consent of the pet owner then a copy of the completed
pet disposal form shall be retained by the veterinarian along with
the records of the attempts to contact the pet owner.
4. No pet disposal form shall be required if:
(a) no pet owner can be identified;
(b) the pet remains originate with a municipality;
(c) the pet is abandoned pursuant to article
twenty-five-B of the agriculture and markets law; or
(d) the pet is to be disposed of without charge
to the pet owner.
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S 750-t. Disposal in compliance
with forms.
A pet cemetery owner shall dispose of a pet in
compliance with a pet disposal form completed by a pet owner or
veterinarian. If such pet is disposed of, either by individual cremation
or individual burial, the pet cemetery owner shall within ten days
of such disposal send or give a written confirmation of such disposal
to the pet owner or veterinarian, depending on instructions in pet
disposal form, and, shall attest to the method, date, and place
of disposal. If a pet is disposed of either through mass cremation
or mass burial, no written confirmation shall be required. Copies
of all forms shall be retained for a period of two years after receipt.
All pet remains shall be buried at least twelve inches below the
surface of the ground or in accordance with section three hundred
seventy-seven of the agriculture and markets law in the case of
a large domestic animal or otherwise disposed of in a
sanitary manner.
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S 750-u. Veterinary and agricultural
production exclusions.
Any pet cemetery which:
1.
(a) is owned by a licensed veterinarian; or
(b) is located on land used in agricultural production;
2. does not allow individual burials;
3. does not allow individual grave markers;
4. does not charge a maintenance fee for the
care of pet graves; and
5. does not make any representation that pet
graves will be cared for or that the land is dedicated; shall be
exempt from the trust fund provisions provided by section seven
hundred fifty-r of this article, the dedication provisions provided
by section seven hundred fifty-n of this article and the area requirement
provided by section seven hundred fifty-p of this article.
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S 750-uu. Small pet cemetery
exclusion.
Any pet cemetery which buries less than five animals
a year, makes no representation that the pet graves will be cared
for or that the land is dedicated, and does not charge a maintenance
fee for the care of the pet graves shall be exempt from the provisions
of sections seven hundred fifty-n, seven hundred fifty-p and seven
hundred fifty-r of this article.
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S 750-v. Duties of pet cemetery
owners and operators.
All pet cemetery owners and operators shall have
the following duties:
1. To keep permanently maps and records containing
the specific site of each pet grave, the grave owner`s last known
address, the date of burial, the size of such grave, the contract
for sale of such grave and pet disposal forms provided however that
the provisions of this subdivision shall apply only to individual
burials.
2. To keep complete records of the names of trustees
of any trust accounts and complete records of all trust fund money.
3. To clearly inform customers of the option
of paying maintenance fees for care of pet graves, including costs
and benefits for
permanent care for pet graves and annual care for pet graves.
4. To cooperate with all reasonable requests
of inspectors appointed by the secretary of state to inspect pet
cemeteries and pet
crematoriums.
5. To provide notice to customers about hours
that the cemetery will
open to customers to view pet graves.
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S 750-w. Separability clause.
If any part or provision of this article or the
application thereof to any person or circumstance be adjudged invalid
by any court of competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall be confined
in its operation to the part, provision or application directly
involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been
rendered and shall not affect or impair the validity of the remainder
of this article or the application thereof to other persons or circumstances
and the legislature hereby declares that it would have enacted this
article or the remainder thereof had the invalidity of such provision
or application thereof been apparent.
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