Title 19 Part 203

cremation means the technical process, using heat and flame, that reduces human remains to ashes and other residue. Cremation shall include the processing, and may include the pulverization, of such ashes and other residue.

cremains means ashes and other residue recovered after the completion of cremation, which may include residue of foreign matter that may have been cremated with the human remains.

casket includes coffin and means a rigid container that is designed for the encasement of human remains and customarily ornamented and lined with fabric.

unfinished wooden box means an unornamented casket made of wood which does not have a fixed interior lining.

alternative container means a nonmetal receptacle or enclosure, typically without ornamentation or a fixed interior lining, which is designed for the encasement of human remains and which is made of cardboard, pressed wood, composition materials (with or without an outside covering) or pouches of canvas or other material.

cremation container means an unfinished wooden box, wooden casket, or alternative container which is rigid on all sides, which can be closed to completely cover the remains of the deceased human being, which is sufficiently sturdy to lift and handle with ease and to support the weight of the deceased and which is fully combustible and intended to be incinerated with the human remains.

ceremonial casket , also known as a rental casket, means a casket which is not intended to be incinerated with the human remains.

crematory means a facility in which the remains of deceased human beings are processed by cremation, the business or entity operating the facility, or both, as the context requires.

retort means the crematory furnace and chamber(s) by which and in which cremation occurs.

temporary storage facility means an area that:

cremation permit means the burial and removal permit required pursuant to section 4145 of the Public Health Law that is annotated for disposition of the remains of a deceased human being by cremation.

person in control of disposition means the person who has the right to control the disposition of the remains of a decedent pursuant to Public Health Law section 4201.

funeral firm means an individual, partnership, corporation or estate representative engaged in the business and practice of funeral directing.

funeral home , also known as a funeral establishment, means a single physical location, address or premises devoted to or used for the care and preparation of a body of a deceased person for disposition and for mourning or funeral ceremonial purposes.

The cremation of remains of more than one deceased human being in a retort at any one time is unlawful, except upon written authorization signed by the persons making funeral arrangements and the persons in control of disposition, and the signed consent of the crematory, which record shall be retained in the permanent file of the crematory.

Upon the completion of the cremation of the remains of a deceased human being, the interior of the retort shall be thoroughly swept so as to render the retort reasonably free of all matter. The cremains and other remains shall be collected for final processing and placed into an individual container and not commingled with other cremains. The cremation permit shall be attached to the individual container prior to final processing.

After pulverization, the cremains shall be transferred to a sealable container or containers which shall have inside dimensions of suitable size to contain the entire cremains of the deceased human being.

The prescribed sealable container shall be accurately and legibly labeled with the identification of the human being whose cremains are contained therein, in compliance with the crematory’s approved written plan for identification of the deceased required by section 203.4(c) of this Part.

The cremains, enclosed in the manner prescribed by sections 203.10 and 203.11 of this Part, shall be disposed of in strict accordance with the direction of the person in control of disposition of the remains as set forth in the cremation authorization form, and in accordance with the provisions of section 4202(4) of the Public Health Law.

Whenever the governor has declared a disaster emergency pursuant to section 28 of the Executive Law or the Cemetery Board determines that emergency conditions exist that substantially delay timely cremation of human remains, then, notwithstanding the requirements of section 203.13(c) of this Part, a crematory may accept human remains delivered with a cremation authorization form in which the intended crematory is not identified, is incorrect, or has been manually corrected by a funeral director or a person authorized to deliver remains on behalf of a funeral director, provided that the crematory is able to verify the intended final disposition for such human remains and provided the person in control of disposition has been made aware of and has consented to the transfer.