HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.C.R. NO.

112

TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

requesting the director of commerce and consumer affairs to require cemetery authorities to distribute summaries of their audited financial statements to THEIR purchasers.

 

 

 


     WHEREAS, section 441-24.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, requires cemetery authorities to submit annual audited financial statements of their pre-need trusts and perpetual care funds to the Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; and

 

     WHEREAS, section 441-24.7, Hawaii Revised Statutes, requires that the audited financial statements be made available for review at the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, by any member of the general public upon request and requires cemetery authorities to notify persons of the availability of such review upon execution of contracts for perpetual care and pre-need services; and

 

     WHEREAS, the administrative rules adopted under the present law makes the audited financial statements available to the public at the Department's office of cemetery and mortuary program during regular working hours on each business day that the office is open to the public; and

 

     WHEREAS, not all purchasers live on Oahu, making physical travel to Honolulu to review the audited financial statements during regular weekday working hours an inconvenience or impracticality; and

 

     WHEREAS, the goal of consumer protection would be better served by simply requiring cemetery authorities to directly distribute the audited financial statements to purchasers rather than be made available for review at the Department; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs has the authority to adopt rules to implement the intent of the present law; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2007, the Senate concurring, that the Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs is requested to adopt rules to require cemetery authorities to distribute summaries of their audited financial statements to their purchasers; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

 

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Cemetery Authorities