11RS House Bill 51

House Bill 51

Actions

Last Action	to Judiciary (H)
Title	AN ACT relating to human remains and burial objects.
Bill Documents	Bill
Impact Statements	Corrections Impact Local Mandate
Bill Request Number	224
Sponsor	R. Meeks
Summary of Original Version	Create new sections of KRS Chapter 171 to require persons excavating archaeological sites on private property to obtain a permit from the Kentucky Heritage Council; establish a process by which the landowner shall provide reasonable access to the cemeteries to the descendants and relatives of those buried within; place responsibility on the landowner to maintain the cemetery's integrity; make denial of access to the cemetery a violation; set out a process by which the state shall dispose of human remains within its custody and control; permit a legally recognized tribal government to conduct reinterment ceremonies for Native Americans; require a person who encounters or accidentally disturbs human remains to immediately cease disturbing the ground in the area of the human remains; place responsibility of encountered or accidentally discovered human remains on the cemetery owner or the state and require responsible party to dispose of; require persons wishing to possess human remains or burial objects to obtain a permit from the Vital Statistics Branch of the Department for Public Health and limit possession to teaching, medical, scientific, or training purposes; make unlawful possession of human remains or burial objects a Class A misdemeanor for the first offense and a Class D felony for each subsequent offense; require a person who unlawfully possesses human remains or burial objects to reimburse the state for the cost of properly disposing of the remains and objects; prohibit the excavation of human remains and burial objects; amend KRS 525.105 to delete the requirement that desecration of a venerated object is shown only when one's purpose is commercial gain or exploitation; require that the tools, implements, or vehicles used in desecrating human objects be seized and sold with profits from such sale going to the council; require a violator to reimburse the Commonwealth for its costs in properly disposing of the human remains and the landowner for damage to the property; amend KRS 525.120 to increase penalty for abuse of a corpse from a Class A misdemeanor to a Class D felony; require human remains possessed or so used to be seized and forfeited to the state; require the violator to reimburse the Commonwealth for the cost of properly disposing of the human remains.
Index Headings of Original Version	Cemeteries and Burials - Archeological artifacts/burial artifacts, protection of Crimes and Punishments - Abuse of corpse and abuse of venerated object, amendment to Local Government - Local governments, enforcement of criminal provisions Corrections Impact - Local governments, enforcement of criminal provisions Local Mandate - Local governments, enforcement of criminal provisions

11/08/10	Prefiled by the sponsor(s).
01/04/11	introduced in House to Judiciary (H)