Perpetual care cemetery; allow certain cemeteries to maintain CDs that mature in one year or less.

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To: Business and Financial
Institutions
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Suber

SENATE BILL NO. 2530

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 41-43-37, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 1
TO INCREASE FROM $50,000.00 OR LESS TO $75,000.00 OR LESS THE 2
PERPETUAL CARE TRUST FUND PRINCIPAL FOR WHICH A PERPETUAL CARE 3
CEMETERY MAY MAINTAIN CERTIFICATES OF DEPOSIT; TO INCREASE FROM 30 4
DAYS TO ONE YEAR OR LESS THE MATURITY DATE FOR SUCH CERTIFICATES 5
OF DEPOSIT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 6
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 7
SECTION 1. Section 41-43-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 8
amended as follows: 9
41-43-37. (1) The owner of every cemetery, subject to the 10
provisions of Section 41-43-31 et seq., that is organized, begins 11
or continues to do business in the State of Mississippi after July 12
1, 2009, shall provide for the creation and establishment of an 13
irrevocable perpetual care trust fund, the principal of which 14
shall permanently remain intact except as hereinafter provided and 15
only the income thereof shall be devoted to the perpetual care of 16
the cemetery. The perpetual care trust fund shall not be subject 17
to the claims of the cemetery's creditors and shall not be used as 18
collateral, pledged, encumbered or placed at risk. This fund 19
shall be created and established as follows: 20
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(a) In respect to a cemetery for earth burials, by the 21
application and payment thereto of an amount equivalent to fifteen 22
percent (15%) of the sale price, or Forty Cents (40¢) per square 23
foot of ground interment rights sold, whichever is greater; 24
(b) In respect to an above-ground community or public 25
mausoleum, by the application and payment thereto of an amount 26
equivalent to five percent (5%) of the sale price, or Fifty 27
Dollars ($50.00) per crypt sold, whichever is greater; 28
(c) In respect to the placement of an above-ground, 29
free-standing or private mausoleum, by the application and payment 30
thereof of an amount equivalent to fifteen percent (15%) of the 31
sale price for the ground interment right upon which the private 32
mausoleum is installed and five percent (5%) of the sales price as 33
determined by the customer's invoice for the purchase price of the 34
private mausoleum; and 35
(d) In respect to a community columbarium, by the 36
application and payment thereto of an amount equivalent to five 37
percent (5%) of the sale price, or Ten Dollars ($10.00) per niche 38
sold, whichever is greater. 39
For any sale of a lot for an earth burial, mausoleum crypt or 40
columbarium niche in which payment is made by the purchaser on an 41
installment basis over time, the percentage required to be trusted 42
shall be paid into the perpetual care trust fund calculated on 43
each payment. 44
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(2) From the sale price the owner shall pay to the perpetual 45
care fund an amount in proportion to the requirements in 46
subsection (1) of this section, which payment shall be in cash, 47
check, money order or electronic transfer and shall be deposited 48
with the custodian or trustee of the fund not later than the fifth 49
day of the following month from when funds are received. 50
(3) If the perpetual care trust fund principal is * * * 51
Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00) or less, a perpetual 52
care cemetery may maintain certificates of deposit that 53
mature * * * in one (1) year or less issued by an institution 54
whose deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance 55
Corporation. Certificates of deposits held by a cemetery for 56
perpetual care under this subsection shall renew automatically 57
with all earned interest added to principal for each successive 58
renewal. Collections owed to trust from sales under subsection 59
(1) of this section shall be added upon the next maturity date of 60
the certificate rather than the fifth day of the following month 61
as required by subsection (2) of this section. Certificates of 62
deposit meeting the requirements of this subsection shall contain 63
the words, "For Perpetual Care," in the caption of the 64
certificate. Each perpetual care cemetery electing to maintain 65
certificates of deposit under this subsection shall file 66
documentation from the issuer with the Office of the Secretary of 67
State with the submission of the annual report. Once the 68
perpetual care principal from the cemetery's operations 69
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exceeds * * * Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00), such 70
funds shall be held in an irrevocable trust managed by a trustee 71
and governed by a trust instrument. 72
(4) In addition to the provisions of subsections (1) and (2) 73
of this section, any cemetery organized after July 1, 2009, or any 74
mausoleum or columbarium that is built at any location other than 75
upon property owned by an existing cemetery after that date, 76
whether it is by incorporation, association, individually or by 77
any other means, or having its first burial after that date, 78
shall, before disposing of any burial lot or right or making any 79
sale thereof and/or making its first burial, cause to be deposited 80
the sum of Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) in cash into 81
an irrevocable perpetual care trust fund as provided in subsection 82
(1) of this section for the maintenance of the cemetery. 83
(5) Whenever the cemetery has deposited in the perpetual 84
care fund, as required by this section, a sum amounting to * * * 85
Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00), it shall submit proof 86
of that fact to its trustee, and it shall be the duty of the 87
trustee to thereupon pay over to the cemetery the amount of 88
Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) so originally deposited 89
by it in the perpetual care fund. 90
(6) The perpetual care fund shall be permanently set aside 91
in trust to be administered under the jurisdiction of the 92
Secretary of State. The Secretary of State shall have full 93
jurisdiction over the reports and accounting of trustees and the 94
S. B. No. 2530 *SS08/R1065* ~ OFFICIAL ~
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ST: Perpetual care cemetery; allow certain
cemeteries to maintain CDs that mature in one
year or less.
amount of a surety bond required, if any. The trust officer or 95
trustee responsible for the investment of funds shall be 96
affiliated with an established bank, trust company, other 97
financial institution or financial services company. Only the 98
income from the fund shall be used for the care and maintenance of 99
the cemetery for which it was established. 100
(7) Each geographic location of a cemetery shall constitute 101
a separate and distinct cemetery for the purpose of interpretation 102
and application of this section. 103
(8) The Secretary of State shall develop and implement a 104
registration system for perpetual care cemeteries subject to this 105
chapter. The Secretary of State is authorized to promulgate rules 106
and regulations for the development and implementation of a 107
statewide registry and to collect a registration fee not to exceed 108
Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) per year to be paid at the same time 109
as the reports and accountings required by Section 41-43-38 are 110
due. 111
(9) To assist with the development of a statewide registry 112
of perpetual care cemeteries, the county boards of supervisors in 113
conjunction with the chancery clerks shall provide the Secretary 114
of State with a list of all perpetual care cemeteries and other 115
pertinent information regarding perpetual care cemeteries situated 116
in their respective counties no later than October 31, 2009. 117
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 118
and after July 1, 2026. 119