2006 New York Code - Private And Family Cemetery Corporations.

 
  § 1401. Private and family cemetery corporations.
    (a)  Private  cemetery corporation. Seven or more persons may become a
  private cemetery corporation by  setting  off  for  a  private  cemetery
  enclosed  real property, to the extent of not more than three acres, and
  by electing at a meeting of the owners of the property so  set  off,  at
  which  not less than seven shall be present, three of their number to be
  directors, to hold office for five years. The chairman and secretary  of
  such meeting shall make, sign and acknowledge, and file in the office of
  the  clerk  of  the  county  in  which such real property is situated, a
  certificate containing the name of the corporation, a description of the
  lands so purchased or set apart, and the names of the directors. No such
  cemetery shall be located within one hundred rods of any  dwelling-house
  without  the  written consent of the owner thereof. Additional lands not
  exceeding three acres may be acquired by a private cemetery corporation;
  but no additional lands so purchased or otherwise acquired shall be used
  for the purpose of burial within three  hundred  feet  of  any  dwelling
  without the written consent of the owner thereof.
    (b)  Removal  of  remains from private cemeteries to other cemeteries.
  The supervisor of any town containing a private cemetery may remove  any
  body interred in such cemetery to any other cemetery within the town, if
  the  owners  of  such  cemeteries  and  the  next of kin of the deceased
  consent to such removal. The owners of a private cemetery may remove the
  bodies interred therein to any other cemetery within such  town,  or  to
  any  cemetery  designated  by the next of kin of the deceased. Notice of
  such removal shall be given  within  twenty  days  before  such  removal
  personally  or  by  certified mail to the next of kin of the deceased if
  known and to the clerk and historian of the county in  which  such  real
  property  is  situated  and  notice shall be given to the New York state
  department of state, division of cemeteries. If any of the deceased  are
  known  to  be  veterans,  the  owners  shall also notify the division of
  veterans' affairs. In the absence of the next of kin, the county  clerk,
  county  historian  or  the  division  of  veterans' affairs may act as a
  guardian to ensure proper reburial.
    (c) Family cemetery corporations. Any person, by deed or  devise,  may
  dedicate  land  to  be  used  exclusively  for  a  family  cemetery. The
  executors, administrators or trustees of a  deceased  person,  with  the
  written  authority  of all of his surviving heirs, next of kin, devisees
  and legatees, executed in person or by an attorney, or  if  infants,  by
  legal  guardian,  may dedicate lands of such deceased person exclusively
  for a family cemetery, or may purchase with the  funds  of  the  estate,
  suitable  lands  therefor.  The land so dedicated shall not exceed three
  acres, not be located within  one  hundred  rods  of  a  dwelling-house,
  without  the  consent  of  the  owner,  unless such land, at the time of
  dedication, is in actual use for burial or cemetery purposes within  the
  limits of a city. The instrument dedicating such land shall describe the
  same,  may  appoint  directors  to  manage  such cemetery, prescribe, or
  provide for making rules, directions or  by-laws  for  such  management,
  direct the manner of choosing successors to the directors, specify their
  qualifications, and grant to them and their successors money or personal
  property  as  a  fund  for  maintaining,  improving and embellishing the
  cemetery, in accordance with the deed or will, or the written  authority
  of  the  heirs,  next  of  kin,  devisees  and  legatees. The instrument
  dedicating land for a family cemetery, together with the  authority,  if
  any,  of  the  heirs, next of kin, devisees and legatees of the deceased
  person, shall be filed in the office of the county clerk of each  county
  in  which  the cemetery is to be situated. The directors before entering
  on their duties, shall file in the office of the county  clerk  of  each
  such  county,  a  written acceptance of their appointment; and thereupon
  they and their successors shall constitute a corporation under the  name
  designated in such instrument. A fund created by will for the purpose of
  maintaining, improving and embellishing such a cemetery shall not exceed
  ten  per  centum  of  the  net value of the estate of the testator. Such
  corporation before receiving any property, money or funds for improving,
  maintaining  and  embellishing  the  cemetery,  shall  execute  to   the
  surrogate  of the county in which such real property is situated, a bond
  with sureties, or the bond of a surety company, approved by  him,  in  a
  penalty  of  twice the principal sum of the fund placed in charge of the
  corporation, conditioned for the faithful preservation  and  application
  thereof  according to the rules, directions or by-laws prescribed in the
  instrument under which the appointment of such directors was  made,  and
  renew such bond or execute a new bond whenever required so to do by such
  surrogate.  At  least  once  in each year and oftener if required by the
  surrogate the corporation shall file with him a verified account of  its
  receipts and expenditures on account of the funds in its hands, or under
  its  control,  together  with vouchers for all disbursements. Any person
  may bequeath or transfer to, and any such corporation may take, money or
  personal property by will, deed or other transfer, upon trust,  to  hold
  and  apply  to  dispose  of  the  same  for  the purpose of maintaining,
  improving and embellishing any lot, plot or portion  of  such  cemetery,
  either  according  to  the discretion of the directors, or for such time
  and upon such terms and conditions,  if  any,  as  to  the  application,
  investment and reinvestment of the principal and income and otherwise as
  shall be stated in the instrument creating the trust as agreed upon, but
  no  such  trust  fund created by will shall exceed ten per centum of the
  net value of the estate of the  testator.  The  corporation  shall  give
  security and account for such money or personal property as hereinbefore
  provided.
    If  security  is  furnished  by  a surety company bond, the reasonable
  expense thereof shall be a charge against the funds of the corporation.
    (d) Type of corporation. A family or private cemetery corporation is a
  type B corporation under this chapter.
    (e) Private and family cemetery  corporations;  prohibitions.  (1)  No
  private or family cemetery corporation shall, directly or indirectly:
    (i)  sell,  or  have, enter into or perform a lease of any of its real
  property to a funeral entity, or use any of its property for location of
  a funeral entity;
    (ii) commingle its funds with a funeral entity;
    (iii) direct or carry on  its  business  or  affairs  with  a  funeral
  entity;
    (iv) authorize control of its business or affairs by a funeral entity;
    (v)  engage in any sale or cross-marketing of goods or services with a
  funeral entity;
    (vi) have, enter into or perform a management or service contract  for
  cemetery operations with a funeral entity; or
    (vii)  have,  enter  into  or  perform  a management contract with any
  entity, other than a not-for-profit cemetery corporation.
    (2) Only the provisions of subparagraphs (i) and (ii)  of  subdivision
  one  of  this paragraph shall apply to cemetery corporations with thirty
  acres or less of real property dedicated to cemetery purposes, and  only
  to  the  extent  the  sale  or  lease  is  of real property dedicated to
  cemetery purposes, and such cemeteries shall not engage in the  sale  of
  funeral  home  goods  or services, except if such goods and services are
  otherwise permitted to be sold by cemeteries.
    (3) For the purposes of  this  paragraph,  "funeral  entity"  means  a
  person,  partnership,  corporation,  limited  liability company or other
  form of  business  organization  providing  funeral  home  services,  or
  owning,  controlling,  conducting or affiliated with a funeral home, any
  subsidiary thereof or an officer, director or stockholder having  a  ten
  per  centum  or  greater  proprietary,  beneficial,  equitable or credit
  interest in a funeral home.