214.270. Definitions.
Definitions.
214.270. As used in sections 214.270 to 214.410, the following termsmean:
(1) "Agent" or "authorized agent", any person empowered by thecemetery operator to represent the operator in dealing with the generalpublic, including owners of the burial space in the cemetery;
(2) "Burial space", one or more than one plot, grave, mausoleum,crypt, lawn, surface lawn crypt, niche or space used or intended for theinterment of the human dead;
(3) "Burial merchandise", a monument, marker, memorial, tombstone,headstone, urn, outer burial container, or similar article which maycontain specific lettering, shape, color, or design as specified by thepurchaser;
(4) "Cemetery", property restricted in use for the interment of thehuman dead by formal dedication or reservation by deed but shall notinclude any of the foregoing held or operated by the state or federalgovernment or any political subdivision thereof, any incorporated city ortown, any county or any religious organization, cemetery association orfraternal society holding the same for sale solely to members and theirimmediate families;
(5) "Cemetery association", any number of persons who shall haveassociated themselves by articles of agreement in writing as anot-for-profit association or organization, whether incorporated orunincorporated, formed for the purpose of ownership, preservation, care,maintenance, adornment and administration of a cemetery. Cemeteryassociations shall be governed by a board of directors. Directors shallserve without compensation;
(6) "Cemetery operator" or "operator", any person who owns, controls,operates or manages a cemetery;
(7) "Cemetery prearranged contract", any contract with a cemeteryoperator for goods and services covered by this chapter which includes asale of burial merchandise in which delivery of merchandise or a validwarehouse receipt under sections 214.270 to 214.550 is deferred pursuant towritten instructions from the purchaser. It shall also mean any contractfor goods and services covered by sections 214.270 to 214.550 whichincludes a sale of burial services to be performed at a future date;
(8) "Cemetery service" or "burial service", those services performedby a cemetery owner or operator licensed as an endowed care or nonendowedcemetery including setting a monument or marker, setting a tent, excavatinga grave, interment, entombment, inurnment, setting a vault, or otherrelated services within the cemetery;
(9) "Columbarium", a building or structure for the inurnment ofcremated human remains;
(10) "Community mausoleum", a mausoleum containing a substantial areaof enclosed space and having either a heating, ventilating or airconditioning system;
(11) "Department", department of insurance, financial institutionsand professional registration;
(12) "Developed acreage", the area which has been platted into gravespaces and has been developed with roads, paths, features, orornamentations and in which burials can be made;
(13) "Director", director of the division of professionalregistration;
(14) "Division", division of professional registration;
(15) "Endowed care", the maintenance, repair and care of all burialspace subject to the endowment within a cemetery, including anyimprovements made for the benefit of such burial space. Endowed care shallinclude the general overhead expenses needed to accomplish suchmaintenance, repair, care and improvements. Endowed care shall include theterms perpetual care, permanent care, continual care, eternal care, care ofduration, or any like term;
(16) "Endowed care cemetery", a cemetery, or a section of a cemetery,which represents itself as offering endowed care and which complies withthe provisions of sections 214.270 to 214.410;
(17) "Endowed care fund", "endowed care trust", or "trust", any cashor cash equivalent, to include any income therefrom, impressed with a trustby the terms of any gift, grant, contribution, payment, devise or bequestto an endowed care cemetery, or its endowed care trust, or funds to bedelivered to an endowed care cemetery's trust received pursuant to acontract and accepted by any endowed care cemetery operator or his agent.This definition includes the terms endowed care funds, maintenance funds,memorial care funds, perpetual care funds, or any like term;
(18) "Escrow account", an account established in lieu of an endowedcare fund as provided under section 214.330 or an account used to holddeposits under section 214.387;
(19) "Escrow agent", an attorney, title company, certified publicaccountant or other person authorized by the division to exercise escrowpowers under the laws of this state;
(20) "Escrow agreement", an agreement subject to approval by theoffice between an escrow agent and a cemetery operator or its agent orrelated party with common ownership, to receive and administer paymentsunder cemetery prearranged contracts sold by the cemetery operator;
(21) "Family burial ground", a cemetery in which no burial space issold to the public and in which interments are restricted to personsrelated by blood or marriage;
(22) "Fraternal cemetery", a cemetery owned, operated, controlled ormanaged by any fraternal organization or auxiliary organizations thereof,in which the sale of burial space is restricted solely to its members andtheir immediate families;
(23) "Garden mausoleum", a mausoleum without a substantial area ofenclosed space and having its crypt and niche fronts open to theatmosphere. Ventilation of the crypts by forced air or otherwise does notconstitute a garden mausoleum as a community mausoleum;
(24) "Government cemetery", or "municipal cemetery", a cemeteryowned, operated, controlled or managed by the federal government, the stateor a political subdivision of the state, including a county or municipalityor instrumentality thereof;
(25) "Grave" or "plot", a place of ground in a cemetery, used orintended to be used for burial of human remains;
(26) "Human remains", the body of a deceased person in any state ofdecomposition, as well as cremated remains;
(27) "Inurnment", placing an urn containing cremated remains in aburial space;
(28) "Lawn crypt", a burial vault or other permanent container for acasket which is permanently installed below ground prior to the time of theactual interment. A lawn crypt may permit single or multiple interments ina grave space;
(29) "Mausoleum", a structure or building for the entombment of humanremains in crypts;
(30) "Niche", a space in a columbarium used or intended to be usedfor inurnment of cremated remains;
(31) "Nonendowed care cemetery", or "nonendowed cemetery", a cemeteryor a section of a cemetery for which no endowed care trust fund has beenestablished in accordance with sections 214.270 to 214.410;
(32) "Office", the office of endowed care cemeteries within thedivision of professional registration;
(33) "Owner of burial space", a person to whom the cemetery operatoror his authorized agent has transferred the right of use of burial space;
(34) "Person", an individual, corporation, partnership, jointventure, association, trust or any other legal entity;
(35) "Registry", the list of cemeteries maintained in the divisionoffice for public review. The division may charge a fee for copies of theregistry;
(36) "Religious cemetery", a cemetery owned, operated, controlled ormanaged by any church, convention of churches, religious order oraffiliated auxiliary thereof in which the sale of burial space isrestricted solely to its members and their immediate families;
(37) "Surface lawn crypt", a sealed burial chamber whose lidprotrudes above the land surface;
(38) "Total acreage", the entire tract which is dedicated to orreserved for cemetery purposes;
(39) "Trustee of an endowed care fund", the separate legal entityappointed as trustee of an endowed care fund.
(L. 1961 p. 538 § 2, A.L. 1990 H.B. 1079, A.L. 1994 S.B. 496, A.L. 1996 S.B. 494, A.L. 2002 S.B. 892, A.L. 2008 S.B. 788, A.L. 2009 S.B. 296)