CHICAGO -- "On July 27, 2009, I convened a Congressional field hearing in this very building [Dirksen Federal Building]. The hearing was called in response to horrifying allegations of grave desecration and tampering at Burr Oak cemetery in Alsip, Illinois. At that hearing, some of the survivors of Burr Oak's buried, including Ms. Roxie Williams, who is with us today, told us how Burr Oak affected them emotionally and financially. They gave personal accounts of how their lives were scarred and feelings of loss resurfaced, when they learned that their loved ones' final resting places had been disturbed, allegedly, by four cemetery employees.
"These witnesses contributed their expertise on the potential for real and tangible consumer abuses. They also offered recommendations to fix broken and ineffective cemetery regulations.
"During the hearing, it became apparent to me that my staff and I must go back to Washington, and work hard to draft proposed legislation that would dramatically reduce the likelihood of a Burr Oak sequel. We decided that the legislation's purpose should be to protect consumers of cemetery merchandise and services, which not only include the deceased, but also the grieving family members they leave behind.
"The bill that I am announcing today––the Bereaved Consumers Protection Act––marks a significant step towards closing unexplainable gaps in consumer protection.
"The mere fact that a consumer has purchased cemetery goods and services or funeral merchandise from a cemetery operator, rather than from a funeral home director, should not diminish protections that are afforded to consumers.
"Funeral, burial, and cremation costs are a major expense for most American households. A great majority of funeral and cemetery consumers are severely handicapped in their transactions with industry. The funeral operations industry is big business in the United States. An estimated 15,000 companies generate more than $15 billion in revenue from the operation of more than 20,000 funeral homes and 10,000 cemeteries and crematoria.
"Seldom are these transactions conducted at "arms-length." Consumers lack leverage and critical information to make informed purchasing decisions. In this regard, the new law is designed to prohibit cemetery operators from acting unfairly or deceptively in their dealings with consumers. Another primary objective of the new law would be to promote fair trading practices, and the flow of funeral goods and services in the stream of interstate commerce.
"The new Protection Act would authorize the Federal Trade Commission to adopt rules, making it a core requirement for cemeteries and crematoria to give consumers accurate, itemized price information and other affirmative disclosures. Cemeteries would also be required to keep clear records of all burials, entombments, and inurnments, and to make those records available to federal, state, and local officials. And, clear explanations of the property rights purchased, in addition to all relevant by-laws and regulations that govern cemetery care and operations, would have to be provided to consumers under the Protection Act.
"Many of the deceased made their own funeral and burial arrangements on a pre-need basis. A lot of them assumed this responsibility in order to spare their loved ones and survivors from the further stress and strain of transacting for these very costly arrangements unassisted, in their absence.
"Pre-need contracts can be price-guaranteed or non-guaranteed. Guaranteed cemetery contracts, just like price-guaranteed, pre-need funeral contracts, provide for payment of future cemetery merchandise and services. Pre-need and at-need contracts can typically be cancelled or transferred to another cemetery. Under the new Act, cemetery sales staffs would be required to include information about any additional costs that may be incurred, as well as information about the costs, fees, and penalties for transferring or cancelling that contract.
"I
want this bill to stop cemetery salesmen from stretching the truth
about which merchandise and services that consumers must purchase to
satisfy state and local minimums. This bill would also make it harder
to "guilt-trip" and "guilt-trap"
consumers into buying more merchandise and services than they need or can afford.
"Finally,
I will be asking the Comptroller General of the Government
Accountability Office (GAO), this week, to survey the degree to which
cemeteries are regulated across the country. Among other things, I
would like the GAO to determine with more precision (since its last
funeral industry study in 2003):
(i)how these cemeteries are owned, and how extensive is common ownership between cemeteries and funeral homes;
(ii) what state and municipal consumer protection and competition laws apply to these entities and consumers;
(iii) what are the penalties for non-compliance with state and local licensing, posting, and disclosure requirements, and who assesses these penalties and enforces these investigations and actions; and
(iv) what state and local licensing, reporting, record-keeping, and registration requirements currently apply to cemetery owners, managers and workers.
"As
part of its Study, I expect the GAO to provide Congress with usable
policy recommendations. These recommendations may inform future
decisions that I make as a Subcommittee Chairman, on the House Energy
and Commerce Committee, to establish fair and meaningful protections
for consumers that interact with the cemetery sector.
"In
closing, I am encouraged by the steps that Governor Quinn has taken
here, in Illinois, to address this frightening episode, through the
work of his Cemetery Oversight Task Force.
"I am certain that the GAO will be monitoring the Task Force's future proceedings and any actions that Springfield might take to adapt these recommendations to regulatory mechanisms affecting the operation and management of Illinois cemeteries.
"Thank you for being with us today. I'd now like to take any questions from the press and media relating to this topic or the actions I have just announced."
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