BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 119
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 119 (Ron Calderon)
As Amended April 8, 2013
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :32-0
BUSINESS & PROFESSIONS 12-0
APPROPRIATIONS 17-0
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|Ayes:|Gordon, Jones, Bocanegra, |Ayes:|Gatto, Harkey, Bigelow, |
| |Campos, Dickinson, | |Bocanegra, Bradford, Ian |
| |Eggman, Hagman, | |Calderon, Campos, |
| |Maienschein, Mullin, | |Donnelly, Eggman, Gomez, |
| |Skinner, Ting, Wilk | |Hall, Holden, Linder, |
| | | |Pan, Quirk, Wagner, Weber |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Authorizes a crematory to incinerate an American flag
or flags separately from human remains within one week before or
after Memorial Day, Flag Day, or Independence Day, and requires
a crematory to maintain a record of all flags incinerated.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Authorizes a crematory regulated by the Cemetery and Funeral
Bureau (Bureau) to cremate an American flag or flags if:
a) Incineration is performed separately from the cremation
of human remains;
b) Incineration of the flag or flags is performed in
accordance with federal law; and,
c) Incineration occurs within one week before or after any
of the following days:
i) Memorial Day (last Monday in May);
ii) Flag Day (June 14); or,
iii) Independence Day (July 4).
SB 119
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2)Provides that nothing in this bill shall be construed to
restrict or infringe upon any person's right to free
expression under the First Amendment to the United States
Constitution.
3)Requires a crematory that incinerates an American flag or
flags to maintain on its premises an accurate record of all
cremations performed for at least 10 years, subject to Bureau
inspection, and which shall include all the following
information:
a) Name of the organization or person requesting
incineration of the flag or flags;
b) Date of the incineration of the flag or flags;
c) Name of the cremation chamber operator;
d) Time and date that the flag or flags were inserted in
the cremation chamber;
e) Time and date that the flag or flags were removed from
the cremation chamber;
f) Weight of the ashes of the flag or flags after being
removed from the cremation chamber; and,
g) Disposition of the ashes of the incinerated flag or
flags.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, there are no significant costs associated with this
legislation.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of this bill . State law does not currently permit
crematories to incinerate American flags for the purpose of
flag disposal, while existing federal law specifies that
burning is the preferable means to destroy a flag that is no
longer fit for display. This bill is intended to authorize
state crematories to dispose of worn-out flags in a dignified
manner. This bill is author sponsored.
SB 119
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2)Author's statement . According to the author's office,
"Service groups and Veteran organizations often collect worn
or soiled American flags in an effort to ensure that these
flags are disposed of properly. Typically, damaged flags are
collected and burned in a ceremony in conjunction with
Memorial Day observances, Flag Day ceremonies, or Independence
Day celebrations. The groups' method of disposal usually
consists of burning the flags in backyard fire pits, but
people have complained about the smoke from open-air burnings
and have raised concerns about the overall safety of the
practice."
3)California cremation requirements . AB 598 (Speier), Chapter
1332, Statutes of 1993, also known as The Cremation Standards
Act (Act), enacted strict procedural rules and
responsibilities for crematory operators to guard against the
mishandling of human remains. The Act specifies a crematory
may only cremate human remains, along with the cremation
container, personal effects of the deceased, and no more than
a negligible amount of chlorinated plastic when necessary.
Because cremated remains are virtually unidentifiable by
family members, the cremation process has great potential for
error or abuse by negligent practitioners. Commingling of
cremated remains is another serious concern, as this is
considered disrespectful to the dead. Throughout the
cremation process, each dead body must be tracked by the
crematory operator and specific information must be entered
into the cremation log. A crematory is required to maintain
an accurate cremation log for at least 10 years.
Analysis Prepared by : Angela Pontes / B.,P. & C.P. / (916)
319-3301
FN: 0001488