CHAPTER 28

REGULATION GOVERNING PRIVATELY OWNED CEMETERIES

Section 1. Authority

These regulations governing privately owned cemeteries are promulgated by the authority of and pursuant to the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act, W.S. 16-3-101 through 16-3-115, W.S. 35-8- 103, W.S. 26-2-109 and W.S. 26-2-110.

Section 2. Purpose

The purpose of these regulations is to protect the interest of the public by providing for the regulation of privately owned cemeteries and by supplementing W.S. 35-8-103.

Section 3. Scope

These regulations shall apply to any cemetery organized by any individual, group of individuals, corporation or association except municipal corporations and duly organized cemetery districts.

Section 4. Definitions

1. (a) “Buyer” means any person who purchases a lot including individuals who are employees or officers of a corporation owning the cemetery.
2. (b) “Columbarium” means a structure or room or other space in a building or structure or a plot of earth, containing niches, used, or intended to be used, to contain cremated human remains.
3. (c) “Cremation” means the interment of a body of a deceased person by reduction to cre- mated remains in a crematory.
4. (d) “Crematory” means a building or structure containing one or more furnaces used, or intended to be used, for the reduction of bodies of deceased persons for cremated remains.
5. (e) “Crematory and columbarium” means a building or structure containing both a crematory and columbarium, used, or intended to be used, for the permanent interment therein by inurnment of the remains of deceased persons.
6. (f) “Crypt” or “vault” as herein used means the chamber in a mausoleum of sufficient size to enter [inter] the uncremated remains of a deceased person.
7. (g) “Entombment” means the permanent interment of the remains of a deceased person in crypt or vault.
8. (h) “Interment” means the permanent disposition of the remains of a deceased person by cremation, inurnment, entombment or burial.
9. (i) “Inurnment” means placing the cremated remains in an urn and permanently depositing the same in a niche.
10. (j) “Lot” or “grave” means a space of ground in a cemetery intended to be used for the permanent interment in the ground of the remains of a deceased person.
11. (k) “Mausoleum” means a structure or building intended to be used, for the permanent interment in crypts and vaults therein of the remains of deceased persons.
12. (l) “Niche” is a recess in a columbarium, used, or intended to be used, for the permanent interment of the cremated remains of one or more deceased persons.
13. (m) “Perpetual care” refers to the general maintenance of the cemetery including the cutting and trimming of lawn, shrubs and trees at reasonable intervals, keeping all places where interments have been made in proper order, keeping in repair the drains, waterlines, roads, buildings, fences and other structures consistent with a well-maintained cemetery; it shall also include overhead expenses necessary for such purposes, including maintenance of machinery, tools and equipment for such care, compensa- tion of employees, payment of reasonable and necessary insurance premiums, reasonable payments for employees’ pension and other benefit plans and the maintenance of necessary records of lot ownership, transfers and burials; and it shall include the administration of endowed care funds in those instances wherein those administering such funds fail or refuse to act.
14. (n) “Person” means an individual, insurer, company, association, organization, Lloyd’s insurer, society, reciprocal insurer or interinsurance exchange, partnership, syndicate, business trust, corporation, agent, general agent, broker, solicitor, service representative, adjuster and any legal entity.
15. (o) “Privately owned cemetery” means any cemetery organized by any individual, group of individuals, corporation or association except municipal corporations and duly organized cemetery districts.
16. (p) “Remains” means the body of a deceased person.
17. (q) “Seller” means an individual, group of individuals, corporation or association who repre- sents them self as a privately owned cemetery to convey lot ownership.

Section 5. Perpetual Care Trust Fund

Any seller shall establish a perpetual care trust fund before the advertisement or sale of lots in the cemetery, and the income and interest of such fund shall be used exclusively for the perpetual care of the cemetery. Such trust fund shall be irrevocable and established in a duly licensed Wyoming bank, trust company authorized to act as a fiduciary or federal savings and loan association and invested as these regulations provide. The irrevocable trust fund shall be established in accordance with the following requirement:

1. (a) Privately owned cemeteries located in an area having a population of less than ten thou- sand persons within a radius of fifteen miles from the center of such cemetery must deposit with the trustee an initial sum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) or more in cash.
2. (b) Privately owned cemeteries located in an area having a population of ten thousand per- sons or more within a radius of fifteen miles from the center of such cemetery must deposit with the trustee an initial sum of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) or more in cash. The seller, after establishment of the perpetual care trust fund, shall thereafter make deposits into the fund as set forth in Section 6. When such deposits have reached twice the initial amounts as stated in (a) and (b) above, the seller may withdraw the sum of the initial deposits at the rate of one thousand dollars ($1,000) for each additional two thousand dollars ($2,000) added to the fund until the entire initial deposits have been withdrawn.

Section 6. Contributions to Perpetual Care Trust Fund

In addition to establishing a perpetual care trust fund, every seller shall deposit into the trust fund not less than the following amounts for graves or interment spaces thereafter sold or disposed of:

1. (a) A minimum of twenty (20) percent of the gross selling price or a minimum of ninety (90) cents per square foot for each grave, whichever is greater.
2. (b) A minimum of twenty (20) percent of the gross selling price or a minimum of eighty dollars ($80.00) for each crypt, whichever is greater.
3. (c) A minimum of twenty (20) percent of the gross selling price or a minimum of fifteen dollars ($15.00) for each inurnment niche in a columbarium, whichever is greater. Such deposit into the perpetual care trust fund shall be made by the seller not later than thirty (30) days after the close of the month in which was received any payment from any source on the pur- chase price of each lot, grave, crypt or niche. If payments for the above are made in installments, only the applicable pro rata share of such payments shall be so deposited. Such amounts shall be held by the trustee of the perpetual care funds of such private cemetery in trust in perpetuity for the specific purposes stated in the written instrument.

Section 7. Bond

Every lot seller shall post with the insurance commissioner a surety bond in an amount of not less than five percent (5%) of all amounts received from all lot buyers or their representatives, whether deposited or invested, such amount to be determined as of the December 31st of the year next preceding, or such greater amount which the lot seller may wish to post, but in no event less than $10,000. The amount of such bond may not be reduced without the prior written approval of the commissioner. The State of Wyoming shall be named as the obligee in such bond for the benefit of the lot buyers, their heirs, legatees or assigns who are damaged by the loss of any monies paid to the lot seller after their receipt by the lot seller. This bond may consist of cash, demand deposits, savings accounts, certificates of deposit or a corporate surety bond or other such security as the insurance commissioner shall require.

Section 8. Investment of Perpetual Care Trust Fund

The lot seller shall limit his deposits to obligations of the United States of America or of any states thereof; obligations and stock of federal government agencies; demand deposits, savings accounts, certificates of deposit, or shares of savings and loan associations, provided that the lot seller may invest, notwithstanding the limitations of this section, funds in an amount not to exceed in the aggregate the amount of the seller’s bond posted in accordance with Section 7 of these rules, in such types of invest- ments which men of prudence, discretion and intelligence would acquire or retain for their own account. Nothing herein shall affect the validity of any investments made prior to the effective date of this sec- tion. The lot seller shall be strictly accountable for the corpus of the funds to the lot buyer and the Wyoming Insurance Commissioner.

Section 9. Treatment of Consumer

No privately owned cemetery shall limit lot sales to people based on sex, race, religion, etc. Whenever a seller conveys ownership in a lot, crypt or niche to a buyer and establishes a per-petual care fund for such lot, crypt or niche, then the seller shall execute and deliver to the buyer an instrument in writing which shall specifically state:

1. (a) The nature and the extent of the perpetual care to be provided.
2. (b) That such care shall be provided from the income and interest of the perpetual care fund.
3. (c) That the perpetual care fund has been established in conformity with these regulations and the laws of Wyoming.

4. (d) That not less than the amounts stated in Section 6 have been set aside and deposited in trust.

   The insurance commissioner shall be notified of and receive master copies of all the written instruments used by the cemetery to the lot buyers including installment contracts, sales promotions, coupons or certificates, warranty deeds, advertising, solicitation practices and any other written instru- ments used in the sale of a lot, crypt or niche. Such written instruments shall be approved by the insur- ance commissioner before use.

Section 10. Inspection of Cemetery

The insurance commissioner reserves the right to physically inspect privately owned cemeteries and determine if proper perpetual care is being taken regardless if all perpetual care fund income is being used for that purpose. The commissioner upon discovering proper perpetual care is not being taken reserves the right to require additional corpus to the trust fund to generate additional income and/or implement procedures to use income more efficiently.

Section 11. Cemetery Records

All records dealing with information about a privately owned cemetery must be maintained in the same county as the cemetery is located. These records should include a detailed map of cemetery, proper up-to-date records of each grave sold and detailed information on deposits and investments of the perpetual care trust funds.

Section 12. Annual Report

Each seller shall file an annual report with the commissioner of the Wyoming Insurance Depart- ment on or before March 1st of each year, in such form as the commissioner may require. Such report shall set forth:

1. (a) The full name and address (both residence and place of business) of the seller and every member, officer, and director thereof;
2. (b) A detailed statement of the seller’s assets and liabilities;
3. (c) A detailed accounting of all transactions, dates and amounts of payments made and accepted thereon;
4. (d) The name and address of each buyer;
5. (e) The name of the decedent as to each contract of sale for a lot, crypt or niche;
6. (f) The total amount deposited in the perpetual care trust fund, listing separately the total amounts paid for the perpetual care of lots, crypts and niches;
7. (g) The total amount of perpetual care funds invested in each of the investments authorized by the commissioner of the Wyoming Insurance Department;
8. (h) The total number of interments or entombments for the year;
9. (i) A detailed statement of how the seller plans to provide for the perpetual care of the cemetery; and

10. (j) Any other facts necessary to show the actual financial condition of the fund.

    The commissioner of the Wyoming Insurance Department shall examine all reports filed to determine compliance with the requirements of the law.

Section 13. Examination

The seller shall make all books and records pertaining to the sale of lots, crypts or niches and to the perpetual care trust fund available to the commissioner for examination. The commissioner, or a qualified person designated by him may from time to time, during ordinary business hours examine the books, records, and accounts of the seller with respect to funds received by said seller and for that purpose may require the attendance of and examination under oath all persons whose testimony he may require. Said examination shall be made in accordance with generally accepted insurance accounting standards. The cost of the examination shall be borne by the cemetery according to the provisions of the Wyoming Insurance Code pertaining to the examination of insurers.

Section 14. Violations

Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of these Privately Owned Cemetery Regula- tions, or make any false or fraudulent report required under the provisions of these regulations shall be punishable in accordance with W.S. 26-1-107 and W.S. 35-8-105.

Section 15. Effective Date

This regulation becomes effective immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State.