2012 New York Consolidated Laws
SOS - Social Services
Article 5 - ASSISTANCE AND CARE
Title 1 - (131 - 152-B) GENERAL PROVISIONS
141 - Burial of the dead.

 
    §  141. Burial of the dead. 1. (a) If a recipient of public assistance
  or care or other person dies leaving no funds or insurance sufficient to
  pay the expense of his burial, the relatives who survive him who were or
  would have been responsible for his support,  pursuant  to  section  one
  hundred  one  of  this chapter, shall be responsible for such expense to
  the extent that they are able to pay the same in whole or in  part;  and
  the  public welfare official paying such expense or any part thereof may
  recover all or part of the amounts expended by him from such  relatives,
  who  shall  be  severally and jointly liable therefor in accordance with
  their respective abilities.
    (b) Except as otherwise provided the public welfare district, town  or
  city  which  was  or  would  have been responsible for furnishing public
  assistance or care to the person while alive shall provide for the care,
  removal and burial of the body of a recipient of  public  assistance  or
  care  who  shall  die,  or  of a person found dead in the public welfare
  district.
    2. If, when such provision is made by a public welfare district,  town
  or  city, the deceased leave no funds or insurance sufficient to pay the
  expense of his burial and there  are  no  known  relatives,  friends  or
  personal  representatives  liable  or  willing to become responsible for
  such expense, the expense of such burial  shall  be  a  charge  on  such
  public  welfare  district,  town or city but the public welfare official
  thereof may recover the same in whole or in part from the  relatives  of
  the deceased liable therefor.
    3.  (a)  When burial arrangements for a recipient of public assistance
  or care are made by relatives or friends of the deceased and the expense
  of such burial does not exceed  the  amount  fixed  by  the  appropriate
  public  welfare  official  or  the  local appropriating body for similar
  burials in similar circumstances, such public welfare official may:
    (1) if such relatives or friends were required to pay the  expense  of
  such  burial  in  order  to arrange the same, wholly or partly reimburse
  them, from assets  transferred  or  assigned  to  such  social  services
  official  by  or  on  behalf of the deceased recipient; but he shall not
  reimburse a legally responsible relative of the deceased for any part of
  the amount paid by him which in the judgment  of  such  social  services
  official  such  relative is able to bear; nor shall such official expend
  from such assets for such purpose more than is permitted by or  pursuant
  to this section, other provisions of this chapter and regulations of the
  department.
    (2)  pay part of the expense of such burial, if, and to the extent and
  under the circumstances, permitted by his local policy, which shall  not
  be   inconsistent   with  this  chapter,  and  the  regulations  of  the
  department; but in no case shall such social services official pay  more
  than  the  balance  remaining  to be paid after the total of the amounts
  paid or to be paid by all other sources, including payments made  or  to
  be  made by such legally responsible relatives of the deceased as are in
  the judgment of such official able to bear the same, is credited to  and
  deducted from such expense.
    (b) In no case shall a public welfare official expend, pursuant to the
  provisions  of  this section or any other provision of this chapter, for
  the burial of a recipient of public  assistance  or  care,  from  assets
  transferred  or  assigned  to  him by or on behalf of such recipient, an
  amount which shall be in excess of five hundred dollars.
    4. For purposes  of  this  section,  the  term  "recipient  of  public
  assistance   and   care"   shall   include   persons  receiving  federal
  supplemental security income benefits pursuant to title sixteen  of  the
  federal social security act and/or additional state payments pursuant to
  title six of article five of this chapter.

    5.  Expenditures  for burial made by social services districts, cities
  and towns pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall, if  approved
  by  the  department,  be  subject  to  reimbursement  by  the  state, in
  accordance with the regulations of the department to the extent  of  one
  hundred  per  centum  thereof  in the case of needy Native Americans and
  members of their families residing on a reservation within the state and
  fifty per centum in all other cases, and  such  reimbursement  shall  be
  claimed  and  paid  in  accordance  with the procedure prescribed by and
  pursuant to section one hundred fifty-three. However, only  so  much  of
  such  an  expenditure  as  does not exceed two hundred fifty dollars for
  expenditures made prior to October first, nineteen  hundred  eighty-six,
  four  hundred  dollars for expenditures made on and after October first,
  nineteen hundred eighty-six and prior to April first,  nineteen  hundred
  eighty-seven and nine hundred dollars for expenditures made on and after
  April   first,   nineteen  hundred  eighty-seven  shall  be  subject  to
  reimbursement by the state.
    6. If an applicant for or a recipient of public assistance or care  or
  of  medical  assistance  under section two hundred nine or three hundred
  sixty-six of this chapter  establishes  an  irrevocable  trust  for  the
  payment  of  his  or  her funeral expenses, or those of a family member,
  under section four hundred fifty-three of the general business law,  any
  funds  remaining in such trust after the payment of all funeral expenses
  must be paid over  to  the  social  services  official  responsible  for
  arranging  for  burials  under  this  section  in  the  local government
  subdivision where the decedent resided.