16:1-7.1 Prohibitions relative to religious entities; terms defined.

1. a. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary, a religious corporation, association, organization or society, however formed or incorporated, that owns or controls a cemetery or that engages in the management, operation or sales of or for a cemetery, whether directly or indirectly, or the owner or operator of a religious cemetery, is prohibited from engaging, directly or indirectly, in:

(1) the ownership, manufacture, installation, sale, creation, inscription, provision or conveyance, in any form, of memorials;

(2) the ownership, manufacture, installation, sale, creation, provision or conveyance, in any form, of vaults, including vaults installed in a grave before or after sale and including vaults joined with each other in the ground;

(3) the ownership, manufacture, installation, sale, creation, provision or conveyance, in any form, of a mausoleum intended for private use, which shall not include a mausoleum built for use by or sale to the general public membership of a religious organization;

(4) the ownership or conduct of any funeral home or mortuary, or the engaging in the business or profession of funeral directing or mortuary science;

(5) the sale, renting or leasing of any of its real property dedicated to cemetery purposes, for the location of a funeral home or mortuary or the conduct of the business or profession of funeral directing or mortuary science; or

(6) the entering into a management contract to authorize control of its cemetery related operations with any entity that, directly or indirectly, in this State, engages in the ownership or conduct of a funeral home or mortuary or that engages in the business or profession of funeral directing or mortuary science.

b. As used in this act:

(1) "funeral directing," "mortuary" and "mortuary science" shall have the same meanings as set forth in section 3 of P.L.1952, c.340 (C.45:7-34); and

(2) "mausoleum," "memorial" and "vault" shall have the same meanings as set forth in section 2 of P.L.2003, c.261 (C.45:27-2).

L.2015, c.30, s.1.