SB525

SECTION 1. Section 441-22.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§441-22.5 Mortuary, cemetery, or pre-need funeral authority; disclosure requirements[.]; notice and consent. (a) No cemetery property, interment services, funeral services, and related commodities shall be sold unless the mortuary, cemetery, or pre-need funeral authority first satisfies the requirements stated in section 441-22.6.

(b) Every cemetery or pre-need funeral authority shall be required to provide to the purchaser of cemetery property, pre-need interment, or pre-need funeral services and related commodities a written contract which shall contain the following disclosures:

(1) The names and addresses of the cemetery or pre-need funeral authority, purchaser, and contract beneficiary, if the beneficiary is someone other than the purchaser;

(2) A clear and concise itemized statement of the property, including, for cemetery property, the location of the plot, crypt, or niche by its unique identifier, and any services and related commodities to be supplied or not supplied and by whom, particularly if the authority is not to be the provider under the terms of the contract;

(3) The purchase price of each item of property, services, and related commodities to be supplied, the total purchase price, and how the total purchase price is payable, including any credit terms, if applicable; provided that, pursuant to section 441-22.7, disclosure shall also be made that further additional charges or fees for perpetual care subsequent to the execution of the contract are prohibited for any purpose and on any occasion, except for reasonable fees related to the administrative costs of transferring ownership rights, including the cost of research, document and file preparation, photocopying, notary fees, records transfer and storage, and any other costs directly related to the transfer of ownership rights;

(4) Related costs covered under the contract;

(5) The basis on which funds are to be deposited in trust, including:

(A) The name and address of the trustee; provided that the disclosure shall not preclude the cemetery or pre-need funeral authority from changing the trustee named;

(B) The percentage of the contract price for trustable items to be placed in trust; provided that the percentage shall be no less than seventy per cent;

(C) The percentage of the contract price for trustable items that the cemetery or pre-need funeral authority will retain and not deposit into the trust; provided that the percentage shall not be more than thirty per cent; and

(D) Where a portion of the contract price relates to property, services, or related commodities that are not trustable items, a clear description of what those non-trustable items are;

(6) The refund, cancellation, and default provisions of the contract, including an explanation of the requirements of section 441-22.8, and a statement in twelve-point bold type in substantially the following form:

"YOU HAVE REFUND, CANCELLATION AND DEFAULT RIGHTS UNDER STATE LAW AND UNDER THE CONTRACT. PLEASE READ THE CONTRACT CAREFULLY FOR AN EXPLANATION OF THESE RIGHTS";

(7) The date and place of execution of the contract;

(8) The cemetery or pre-need funeral authority's or its duly authorized agent's signature on the contract and the identification of this person by name and title;

(9) A statement that the written contract, when signed, shall constitute the entire agreement between the parties relative to its subject matter and that all obligations of both parties shall be fixed and enforceable by the other parties of the contract; and

(10) A statement that the contract may not waive any rights of the consumer or duties of the cemetery or pre-need funeral authority under the law.

(c) No mortuary, cemetery, or pre-need funeral authority shall charge a price for the cemetery property, interment, or funeral services, whether it be at-need or pre-need, which is greater than the price on the itemized price list or contract [~~which~~] that the purchaser had signed, unless the purchaser or the purchaser's authorized representative requests an additional item, the authority discloses the price for the additional item, and the purchaser or its authorized representative approves the price for the additional item. The mortuary, cemetery, or pre-need funeral authority may charge the higher price for the additional item but shall collect in payment only that sum [~~which~~] that is the difference between the higher price and the price listed on the itemized price list or contract [~~which~~] that the purchaser had previously signed.

(d) Beginning October 1, 2025, any mortuary, cemetery, or pre-need funeral authority that enters into a contract to provide a purchaser funeral services that includes cremation, shall include in the contract:

(1) A provision that requires written notice to the purchaser if precious metals are recovered at the conclusion of the cremation process; and

(2) A statement that written consent shall be obtained by the purchaser before the sale or recycling of any recovered precious metals.

(e) As used in this section:

"Cremation" has the same meaning as defined in section 531B-2.

"Precious metals" includes any precious metals from jewelry, medical devices, or dental implants.

"Purchaser" includes the contract beneficiary or the authorized agent who is legally entitled to control the disposition of the human remains."

SECTION 2. No later than January 1, 2026, any mortuary, cemetery, or pre-need funeral authority that has entered into a contract prior to October 1, 2025, to provide a purchaser funeral services that includes cremation shall provide to the purchaser an addendum that includes the terms required under sections 441-22.5(d)(1) and (2), Hawaii Revised Statutes.

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	525
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2025
STATE OF HAWAII