IDFPR moves forward with cemetery oversight

                     Legislators serving on the Joint Committee

                     on Administrative Rules (JCAR) voted on Oct. 11, 2011 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.