The draft bill/Act SB1210, to revise the Funeral and Embalmers Statutes and Rules was dropped on January 25, 2023 and can be reviewed here.
A meeting was held on Monday, January 30 between Senator Kaiser plus staff, and representation from Messingers and AFCCA.
Our key points of discussion were:
- Writing back in the Embalmer License and maintaining the Funeral Director, Crematory Operator and Hydrolysis Operator licenses.
- Ensuring education remains in tact to receive licensing and that graduates must have been an intern for one year before obtaining licensing. Not necessarily requiring an intern license. Also continuing education for license renewal
- Asking for an advisory counsel within the Department of Health to be sure we are not lost in the shuffle as we are a specialized profession.
- Clarifying the removal of background checks and advocating that there should be some policy in place in order to protect the integrity of the profession.
We are currently are working on an amendment with Senator Kaiser that will most importantly retain all licensing requirements and also include an advisory counsel within the Department of Health, among other changes.
We are working with legislative counsel on the language as this email is sent. We are aware of the Commerce Committee hearing on February 9, however Senator Kaiser has agreed to hold the bill until we finalize the amendment.
We appreciate Senator Kaiser’s willingness to work with us on this important bill for our Profession.
AFCCA will continue to keep you apprised of any changes and if any action needs to be taken from the members.