Human remains disposal: alkaline hydrolysis: licensure and regulation.

The Cemetery and Funeral Act provides for the licensure and regulation of cemeteries, crematoria, funeral establishments, and their personnel by the Cemetery and Funeral Bureau within the Department of Consumer Affairs. Existing law creates the Cemetery and Funeral Fund, which is continuously appropriated for the purpose of implementing the act. Under existing law, the violation of the act is a misdemeanor. Existing law requires a local registrar of births and deaths to issue permits for the disposition of cremated remains. This bill, commencing July 1, 2020, would require the bureau to license and regulate hydrolysis facilities, as defined, and hydrolysis facility managers, and would enact requirements applicable to hydrolysis facilities substantially similar to those applicable to crematoria. By expanding the definition of crimes relating to the disposition of human remains and creating new crimes, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require an applicant for a hydrolysis facility license to present to the bureau any state or locally required permits for business operations, prove that it has the appropriate permits and contracts for the disposal of hydrolysate, and employ a hydrolysis chamber approved by the State Department of Public Health, as specified. The bill would require the application for a hydrolysis facility license to be made in writing on the form prescribed by the bureau and accompanied by a licensing fee, which would be deposited into the Cemetery and Funeral Fund. The bill also would authorize the bureau to impose an additional charge to be fixed at not more than $8.50 per hydrolysis made during the preceding quarter. By depositing moneys in a continuously appropriated fund, this bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require a local registrar of births or deaths to issue permits for the disposition of hydrolyzed human remains. By increasing the duties of local agencies, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for specified reasons.