32-2194.33. Cemetery property owners; address notification reclamation; abandoned cemetery plot

A. For the purposes of this section, an owner of cemetery property in any cemetery licensed under this chapter shall keep the cemetery informed in writing of the owner's current residence address. Before initiating a notice of abandonment, the cemetery shall notify each cemetery property owner by letter at the owner's last known address and notify all future cemetery property owners, in the contract for sale and the certificate of ownership, of the requirement to keep the cemetery informed in writing of their current residence address.

B. There is a presumption that cemetery property in any cemetery licensed under this chapter has been abandoned when an owner of unused cemetery property has failed to provide the cemetery with a current residence address for a period of fifty consecutive years and as a result the cemetery is unable to communicate by certified mail with the owner of the unused cemetery property. There is not a presumption of abandonment if either of the following occurs:

1. Cemetery property held in common ownership is adjoining whether in a grave space, plot, mausoleum, columbarium or other place of interment and is used within common ownership.

2. Any type of memorial marker has been placed on or attached to the cemetery property.

C. On the occurrence of a presumption of abandonment as prescribed by subsection B of this section, a cemetery may file with the department a certified notice attesting to the abandonment of the cemetery property. The notice shall do the following:

1. Describe the cemetery plot certified to have been abandoned.

2. Set forth the name of the last known owner of the cemetery plot or, if the owner is known to the cemetery to be deceased, the names, if known to the cemetery, of claimants that are heirs at law, next of kin or specific devisees under the will of the owner.

3. Describe the failure of the owner or claimants as prescribed by paragraph 2 of this subsection to keep the cemetery informed of the owner's current residence address for a period of fifty consecutive years or more.

4. Certify that cemetery property has not been included that is held in common ownership with any abandoned cemetery property as prescribed by subsection B of this section and that a memorial marker has not been placed on or attached to the cemetery property.

D. Irrespective of diversity of ownership of the cemetery property, a cemetery may include in its certification cemetery properties of various types.

E. The cemetery shall publish a notice of the approved abandoned cemetery property once each week for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the cemetery property is located.

F. After one hundred twenty days from the final publication of the notice as provided in subsection E of this section, if there has been no notification of the address of the current owner, the cemetery shall have the right to resell the cemetery property and transfer the ownership of the cemetery property as provided in the cemetery's certificate of authority.

G. On the sale of each lot, grave, niche or crypt reclaimed pursuant to this section, the cemetery shall contribute to the endowed-care trust fund the amount currently required by section 32-2194.28.

H. On showing of evidence of right of ownership, persons or their heirs who were owners of cemetery property that was sold under this section shall have the right at any time to obtain equivalent cemetery property in the cemetery without additional charge. If no cemetery property is desired, the persons or their heirs may obtain and recover the amount originally paid to the cemetery for the cemetery property.

I. The cemetery shall make available cemetery property equal to ten per cent of the abandoned cemetery property sold under this section for the use of persons or their heirs who were owners of cemetery property that was sold under this section and who have the right at any time to obtain cemetery property in the cemetery under this section.

J. Persons who purchase cemetery property reclaimed pursuant to this section shall have the right to sell, alienate or otherwise transfer the cemetery property subject to and in accordance with the rules of the cemetery and payment of any applicable transfer fee.