Texas Health And Safety Code Title 8, Chapter 711 - General Provisions Relating To Cemeteries

SUBCHAPTER A GENERAL PROVISIONS

• Texas Section 711.001 - Definitions
  In this chapter: (1) "Burial park" means a tract of land that is used or intended to be used for interment in graves. (1-a) "Campus"...
• Texas Section 711.002 - Disposition Of Remains; Duty To Inter
  (a) Except as provided by Subsection (l), unless a decedent has left directions in writing for the disposition of the decedent's remains as provided in...
• Texas Section 711.003 - Records Of Interment
  A record shall be kept of each interment in a cemetery. The record must include: (1) the date the remains are received; (2) the date...
• Texas Section 711.004 - Removal Of Remains
  (a) Remains interred in a cemetery may be removed from a plot in the cemetery with the written consent of the cemetery organization operating the...
• Texas Section 711.007 - Nuisance; Abatement And Injunction
  (a) A district court of the county in which a cemetery is located may, by order, abate the cemetery as a nuisance and enjoin its...
• Texas Section 711.008 - Location Of Cemetery
  (a) Except as provided by Subsections (b), (f), (g), (h), and (k), an individual, corporation, partnership, firm, trust, or association may not establish or operate...
• Texas Section 711.009 - Authority Of Cemetery Keeper
  (a) The superintendent, sexton, or other person in charge of a cemetery has the same powers, duties, and immunities granted by law to: (1) a...
• Texas Section 711.010 - Unknown Or Abandoned Cemetery
  (a) The owner of property on which an unknown cemetery is discovered or on which an abandoned cemetery is located may not construct improvements on...
• Texas Section 711.0105 - Method Of Removal Of Remains
  (a) The removal of remains authorized under this chapter shall be supervised by a cemetery keeper, a licensed funeral director, a medical examiner, a coroner,...
• Texas Section 711.011 - Filing Record Of Unknown Cemetery
  (a) A person who discovers an unknown or abandoned cemetery shall file notice of the cemetery with the county clerk of the county in which...

SUBCHAPTER B CEMETERY CORPORATIONS

• Texas Section 711.012 - Rules
  (a) The Finance Commission of Texas may adopt rules to enforce and administer Subchapter C-1 and Sections 711.003, 711.004, 711.007, 711.008, 711.0105, 711.021-711.024, 711.032-711.036, 711.038,...
• Texas Section 711.021 - Formation Of Corporation To Maintain And Operate Cemetery
  (a) An individual, corporation, partnership, firm, trust, or association may not engage in a business for cemetery purposes in this state unless the person is...
• Texas Section 711.022 - Formation Of Nonprofit Cemetery Corporation By Plot Owners
  (a) Plot owners may organize a nonprofit corporation to receive title to land previously dedicated to cemetery purposes. (b) The plot owners must: (1) publish...
• Texas Section 711.023 - Rights Of Plot Owners In Cemetery Operated By Nonprofit Cemetery Corporation
  (a) A person who purchases a plot from a nonprofit cemetery corporation is a shareholder of the corporation. The person may vote in the election...

SUBCHAPTER C CEMETERY ORGANIZATIONS

• Texas Section 711.024 - Authority Of Nonprofit Cemetery Corporation
  A nonprofit cemetery corporation organized by plot owners may divide cemetery property into lots and subdivisions for cemetery purposes and charge assessments on the property...
• Texas Section 711.031 - Rules; Civil Penalty
  (a) A cemetery organization may adopt and enforce rules: (1) concerning the use, care, control, management, restriction, and protection of the cemetery operated by the...
• Texas Section 711.032 - Discrimination By Race, Color, Or National Origin Prohibited
  (a) A cemetery organization may not adopt or enforce a rule that prohibits interment because of the race, color, or national origin of a decedent....
• Texas Section 711.033 - Property Acquisition By Cemetery Organization; Recording Title
  (a) A cemetery organization may acquire by purchase, donation, or devise property consisting of land, a mausoleum, a crematory and columbarium, or other property in...
• Texas Section 711.034 - Dedication
  (a) A cemetery organization that acquires property for interment purposes shall: (1) in the case of land, survey and subdivide the property into gardens or...
• Texas Section 711.035 - Effect Of Dedication
  (a) Property may be dedicated for cemetery purposes, and the dedication is permitted in respect for the dead, for the disposition of remains, and in...
• Texas Section 711.036 - Removal Of Dedication
  (a) A cemetery organization may petition a district court of the county in which its dedicated cemetery is located to remove the dedication with respect...
• Texas Section 711.037 - Lien Against Cemetery Property
  (a) A cemetery organization by contract may incur indebtedness as required to conduct its business and may secure the indebtedness by mortgage, deed of trust,...
• Texas Section 711.038 - Sale Of Plots By Cemetery Organizations
  (a) A cemetery organization may sell and convey the exclusive right of sepulture in a plot: (1) after a map or plat and a certificate...
• Texas Section 711.0381 - Sale Or Resale Of Plots By Certain Persons
  (a) A person may not act as a cemetery broker in the sale or resale of the exclusive right of sepulture in a plot unless...
• Texas Section 711.039 - Rights Of Interment In Plot
  (a) A plot in which the exclusive right of sepulture is conveyed is presumed to be the separate property of the person named as grantee...
• Texas Section 711.0395 - Multiple Interments In Same Plot
  A cemetery organization may not make more than one interment in a plot unless each owner of the plot consents to the interment. Added by...
• Texas Section 711.040 - Multiple Owners Of Plot
  Two or more owners of a plot may designate a person to represent the plot and file with the cemetery organization written notice of the...
• Texas Section 711.041 - Access To Cemetery
  (a) Any person who wishes to visit a cemetery or private burial grounds for which no public ingress or egress is available shall have the...

SUBCHAPTER C-1 CEMETERY BROKER REGISTRATION

• Texas Section 711.042 - Authority Of Nonprofit Cemetery Organization
  A nonprofit cemetery organization organized by plot owners may: (1) divide cemetery property into lots and subdivisions for cemetery purposes; (2) charge assessments on the...
• Texas Section 711.045 - Definitions
  In this subchapter: (1) "Commission" means the Finance Commission of Texas. (2) "Commissioner" means the banking commissioner of Texas. (3) "Department" means the Texas Department...
• Texas Section 711.046 - Cemetery Broker Registration
  (a) To register under this subchapter, a cemetery broker shall file with the department a sworn, notarized statement that contains: (1) the name and street...
• Texas Section 711.047 - Exemptions
  This subchapter does not apply to a person offering to sell or selling the exclusive right of sepulture in a plot if the person is:...
• Texas Section 711.048 - Complaints
  (a) A cemetery broker is subject to rules adopted under Section 11.307, Finance Code, regarding the manner in which the cemetery broker provides consumers with...

SUBCHAPTER D ENFORCEMENT

• Texas Section 711.049 - Termination Of Registration
  (a) A cemetery broker may withdraw the cemetery broker's registration at any time. (b) After notice and opportunity for a hearing, the commissioner may revoke...
• Texas Section 711.051 - Enforcement By Attorney General; Proceedings To Forfeit Charter For Noncompliance
  (a) A cemetery corporation that violates this chapter or Chapter 712 forfeits the corporation's charter and right to do business in this state unless the...
• Texas Section 711.0515 - Enforcement By Attorney General; Injunctive Relief
  In addition to bringing an action under Section 711.051, the attorney general at the request of the Texas Funeral Service Commission may bring an action...
• Texas Section 711.052 - Criminal Penalties
  Sec. 711.052. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. (a) A person who is an individual, firm, association, corporation, or municipality, or an officer, agent, or employee of an individual,...
• Texas Section 711.0521 - Access To Cemeteries; Criminal Penalties
  (a) A person who is an individual, firm, association, corporation, or municipality, or an officer, agent, or employee of an individual, firm, association, corporation, or...
• Texas Section 711.053 - Definition
  In this subchapter, "commissioner" means the banking commissioner of Texas. Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 562, Sec. 35, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
• Texas Section 711.054 - Enforcement By Finance Commission Of Texas
  The Finance Commission of Texas may use remedies available under Chapter 712 to enforce a section listed under Section 711.012(a) relating to perpetual care cemeteries....
• Texas Section 711.055 - Enforcement By Commissioner
  (a) Chapter 2001, Government Code, applies to a proceeding under this section. (b) After notice and opportunity for hearing, the commissioner may impose an administrative...
• Texas Section 711.056 - Pattern Of Wilful Disregard
  (a) If after a hearing conducted as provided by Chapter 2001, Government Code, the trier of fact finds that a violation of this chapter or...
• Texas Section 711.057 - Emergency Order
  (a) The commissioner may issue an emergency order that takes effect immediately if the commissioner finds that immediate and irreparable harm is threatened to the...
• Texas Section 711.058 - Restitution
  The commissioner may issue an order to a person requiring restitution if, after notice and opportunity for hearing, the commissioner finds that the person: (1)...

SUBCHAPTER E LAWN CRYPTS

• Texas Section 711.059 - Seizure Of Accounts And Records
  (a) The commissioner may issue an order to seize accounts in which funds from the sale or resale of the exclusive right of sepulture in...
• Texas Section 711.061 - Requirements For Lawn Crypts
  (a) A lawn crypt may not be installed unless: (1) the lawn crypt is constructed of concrete and reinforced steel or other comparably durable material;...
• Texas Section 711.063 - Construction; Default
  (a) A cemetery in which undeveloped lawn crypt spaces are being sold or reserved for sale shall begin construction on the lawn crypt section not...

SUBCHAPTER F POWERS AND DUTIES OF DEPARTMENT

• Texas Section 711.064 - Contract Disclosures
  (a) A sales contract for an undeveloped lawn crypt space must contain terms, whether in English or Spanish, that inform the buyer: (1) that the...
• Texas Section 711.081 - Definitions
  In this subchapter: (1) "Commission" means the Finance Commission of Texas. (2) "Commissioner" means the banking commissioner of Texas. (3) "Department" means the Texas Department...
• Texas Section 711.082 - Administration; Fees
  (a) The department shall administer Subchapters C and C-1 relating to cemetery brokers. (b) The commission may adopt reasonable rules concerning: (1) fees to defray...
• Texas Section 711.083 - Records; Examination
  (a) A person acting as a cemetery broker shall maintain records in accordance with this subchapter and Section 711.0381. (b) The department shall examine the...
• Texas Section 711.084 - Examination Fee
  (a) For each examination conducted under Section 711.083, the commissioner or the commissioner's agent shall impose on the cemetery broker a fee in an amount...

Last modified: September 28, 2016