The body of a person whose death occurs in this state shall not be interred, deposited in a vault or tomb, cremated, or otherwise disposed of by a funeral director until a burial permit is issued by a local registrar or sub-registrar of vital statistics. No such permit shall be issued by a local registrar or sub-registrar until a satisfactory death, fetal death, or provisional death certificate is filed with the local registrar or sub-registrar. When the medical certification as to the cause of death cannot be provided by the attending physician or coroner prior to burial, for sufficient cause, as determined by rule of the director of health, the funeral director may file a provisional death certificate with the local registrar or sub-registrar for the purpose of securing a burial or burial-transit permit. When the funeral director files a provisional death certificate to secure a burial or burial-transit permit, the funeral director shall file a satisfactory and complete death certificate within five days after the date of death. The director of health, by rule, may provide additional time for filing a satisfactory death certificate. A burial permit authorizing cremation shall not be issued upon the filing of a provisional certificate of death.

When a funeral director or other person obtains a burial permit from a local registrar or sub-registrar, the registrar or sub-registrar shall charge a fee of three dollars for the issuance of the burial permit. Two dollars and fifty cents of each fee collected for a burial permit shall be paid into the state treasury to the credit of the division of real estate in the department of commerce to be used by the division in discharging its duties prescribed in Chapter 4767. of the Revised Code and the Ohio cemetery dispute resolution commission created by section 4767.05 of the Revised Code. A local registrar or sub-registrar shall transmit payments of that portion of the amount of each fee collected under this section to the treasurer of state on a quarterly basis or more frequently, if possible. The director of health, by rule, shall provide for the issuance of a burial permit without the payment of the fee required by this section if the total cost of the burial will be paid by an agency or instrumentality of the United States, the state or a state agency, or a political subdivision of the state.

The director of commerce may by rule adopted in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code reduce the total amount of the fee required by this section and that portion of the amount of the fee required to be paid to the credit of the division of real estate for the use of the division and the Ohio cemetery dispute resolution commission, if the director determines that the total amount of funds the fee is generating at the amount required by this section exceeds the amount of funds the division of real estate and the commission need to carry out their powers and duties prescribed in Chapter 4767. of the Revised Code.

No person in charge of any premises in which interments or cremations are made shall inter or cremate or otherwise dispose of a body, unless it is accompanied by a burial permit. Each person in charge of a cemetery, crematory, or other place of disposal shall indorse upon a burial permit the date of interment, cremation, or other disposal and shall retain such permits for a period of at least five years. The person in charge shall keep an accurate record of all interments, cremations, or other disposal of dead bodies, made in the premises under the person's charge, stating the name of the deceased person, place of death, date of burial, cremation, or other disposal, and name and address of the funeral director. Such record shall at all times be open to public inspection.

Effective Date: 09-22-2000.