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19 NYCRR 203.1 - Definitions

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19 NYCRR 203.2 - Maintenance and privacy

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(a)A crematory shall be used exclusively for the cremation of human remains.

(b)A crematory shall be maintained in a clean, orderly and sanitary manner, with adequate ventilation and shall have a temporary storage facility.

(c)Every crematory must at all times follow accepted policies and procedures with respect to infection control, including standard precautions developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

(d)The general retort area and the temporary storage facility shall be separately enclosed areas and when fully closed, the interior of one area shall not be visible from within the other area.

(e)Every crematory shall use its best efforts to cremate remains within 24 hours of accepting delivery of such remains. Good cause, such as the need to confirm the identity of the deceased human being, must be demonstrated if remains are cremated more than 48 hours after delivery is accepted.

(f)Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any remains exhibit an objectionable odor either at delivery or at any time thereafter, such remains shall be cremated as soon as possible after they have been accepted by the crematory or as soon as possible after the objectionable odor is first detected. If any remains are known by crematory personnel not to have been embalmed, such remains shall be cremated as soon as possible after they have been accepted by the crematory.

(g)A crematory may also have a ceremony room available for viewings and ceremonies. The ceremony room shall be separately enclosed from the general retort area and the temporary storage facility. The temporary storage facility interior shall not be visible or accessible from the ceremony room. Only members of the immediate family of the deceased or their authorized agents and designated representatives may be present in the ceremony room during the cremation of the remains of the deceased.

(h)Entrances and exterior windows of the crematory shall be maintained at all times to secure privacy, including:

(1)doors shall be tight closing and rigid;

(2)windows shall be covered;

(3)entrances shall be marked "private" or "authorized entry only" to preclude entry by unauthorized persons; and

(4)entrances shall be locked and secured when not actively attended by authorized crematory personnel.

(i)No crematory may impose a charge for the cremation of the remains of a deceased human being based on the combined weight of the remains and the cremation container unless it shall have in place a scale capable of accurately determining their combined weight. The scale shall be of suitable size and capacity and shall be installed, used and inspected in conformance with article 16 of the Agriculture and Markets Law and regulations promulgated thereunder.

(j)Every crematory shall annually certify to the Division of Cemeteries that the condition and operation of the crematory comply with Not-for-Profit Corporation Law article 15 and with this Part and shall submit with such certification its most recent annual Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) inspection report. The crematory certification and DEC inspection report shall be filed on or before the 15th day of January of each year and shall be retained in the permanent file of the crematory.

19 NYCRR 203.3 - Crematory access

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(a)No persons except authorized persons shall be admitted into the temporary storage facility while human remains are being stored and no persons except authorized persons shall be admitted into the retort area while the remains of deceased human beings are being cremated. Authorized persons shall enter and remain in the temporary storage facility or retort area only as necessary to perform or assist with the performance of crematory business and operations. On admittance, authorized persons shall comply with all rules of the crematory and not infringe upon the privacy and dignity of the remains of deceased human beings.

(b)The following are authorized persons:

(1)licensed, registered funeral directors, undertakers, registered residents, and enrolled students of mortuary science;

(2)officers and trustees of the crematory;

(3)authorized employees or agents of the crematory;

(4)public officers acting in the discharge of their duties;

(5)authorized instructors of funeral directing schools;

(6)licensed physicians or nurses; and

(7)members of the immediate family of the deceased and their authorized agents and designated representatives.

19 NYCRR 203.4 - Identification of deceased human beings

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(a)No crematory shall accept the remains of any deceased human being without a cremation permit and a cremation authorization form as provided in section 203.13(c) of this Part. The cremation permit shall constitute presumptive evidence of the identity of the remains.

(b)If a crematory has a reasonable, well-grounded basis to doubt the identity of the remains, the cremation shall not commence until reasonable confirmation of the identity of the deceased human being has been made.

(c)The crematory shall, by a written plan available for inspection by the Division of Cemeteries, assure that the identification of the deceased, as established by the cremation permit or subsequent confirming document, accompanies the remains of the deceased human being until the identity of the deceased is accurately and legibly inscribed on the containers in which the cremains are placed. From the time the crematory accepts delivery of the remains of a deceased human being until the time the crematory delivers the cremains as directed, the crematory shall be responsible for the remains of the deceased human being and for maintaining the identification of the remains.

(d)If a document confirming the identity of the deceased is required, it shall be provided by the person in control of disposition and may be in the form of, but not limited to:

(1)a signed affidavit from a licensed physician, a member of the family of the deceased human being, or the person in control of disposition; or

(2)a court order from the State Supreme Court within the county of the crematory.

(e)A copy of the cremation permit and the document confirming the identity of the deceased shall be retained in the permanent file of the crematory.

19 NYCRR 203.5 - Suitable container

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(a)A crematory shall not accept delivery of the remains of a deceased human being unless delivered in either a ceremonial casket or a cremation container.

(b)A crematory shall only cremate remains in a cremation container.

(c)If the remains are not delivered in a cremation container, the crematory shall not accept delivery of the remains unless at the time of delivery the crematory receives a written acknowledgment and authorization signed by the person in control of disposition that said person has been notified that transfer of the remains to a cremation container will be required prior to cremation and that said person authorizes such transfer of the remains.

(d)The signed acknowledgment and authorization of the person in control of disposition shall be retained in the permanent file of the crematory.

19 NYCRR 203.6 - Opening container or removing or transferring remains

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(a)The container holding the remains of the deceased human being shall be opened after delivery to the crematory only for the following purposes and only after the crematory first receives signed authorization for such action:

(1)to confirm the identity of the deceased;

(2)to assure that no material is enclosed which might cause injury to employees or damage to crematory property;

(3)to transfer the remains to a cremation container;

(4)to comply with any reasonable demand by members of the immediate family or the person in control of disposition; or

(5)to comply with the demand of a public officer in the discharge of the officer’s statutory duty.

(b)After delivery of the remains of a deceased human being to a crematory, any opening of the container or transfer or removal of remains may only be conducted by the licensed, registered funeral director, undertaker or registered resident delivering the remains of the deceased human being with the assistance of crematory personnel if necessary. The opening, transfer, or removal shall be performed in the presence of a witness who may be an employee or representative of the crematory. A record shall be made of the action taken, which record shall include the reason for such action, the signature of the person authorizing the action, the names of the persons conducting the opening, transfer or removal and the names of the witnesses thereof. In the case of a transfer of remains, the record shall also set forth the manner of disposition of the original container. The record shall be retained in the permanent file of the crematory.

(c)The person providing the signed authorization must be someone other than an employee, officer, trustee or other representative of the crematory. In the case of a removal of remains, the signed authorization shall be provided by the person in control of disposition or by a public officer discharging the officer’s statutory duty.

(d)The opening of a container or the transfer or removal of remains shall be conducted in privacy with dignity and respect and shall comply with all rules and regulations intended to protect the health and safety of crematory personnel.

19 NYCRR 203.7 - Commingling human remains

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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.

19 NYCRR 203.8 - Cleaning of retort

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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.

19 NYCRR 203.9 - Final processing

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(a)A magnet and sieve, or other appropriate method of separation, may be used to divide the cremains from incidental or foreign material.

(b)The incidental and foreign material of the cremation process shall be disposed of in a safe manner in compliance with all applicable Federal, State and local government sanitary rules and regulations.

(c)

(1)Unless the person in control of disposition and the crematory otherwise agree as set forth in paragraph (2) of this subdivision, the entire cremains shall be pulverized until no single fragment is recognizable as skeletal tissue.

(2)If the person in control of disposition requests in a signed and witnessed writing that a fragment of the cremains be preserved as recognizable skeletal tissue and provides a religious or cultural reason for the request, the crematory may consent in a signed writing to such a request. In that event, prior to pulverization of the cremains, the crematory may set aside a single fragment which is recognizable as skeletal tissue and which does not have any dimension greater than three inches. The remainder of the cremains shall be pulverized until no single fragment of the remainder is recognizable as skeletal tissue. The single fragment that is set aside must be combined again with the remainder of the cremains immediately after the remainder has been pulverized. The signed and witnessed writing from the person in control of disposition and the signed written consent of the crematory shall be retained in the permanent file of the crematory.

19 NYCRR 203.10 - Container size

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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.

19 NYCRR 203.11 - Identity label

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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.

19 NYCRR 203.12 - Disposing of cremains

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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.

19 NYCRR 203.13 - Crematory records

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19 NYCRR 203.14 - Emergency cases

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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.

19 NYCRR 203.15 - [Repealed]

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