Ark. Code Ann. » Title 17 Chapter 29
Arkansas Code Annotated

Ark. Code Ann. § 17-29-311 (2020)

Prohibited conduct — Sanctions

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  1. The State Board of Embalmers, Funeral Directors, Cemeteries, and Burial Services may issue letters of reprimand or caution, refuse to issue or renew a license, suspend or revoke any license for the practice of embalming or funeral directing, or may place the holder thereof on a term of probation after proper hearing upon finding the holder of the license to be guilty of acts of commission or omission, including the following:
    1. Conviction of a felony listed under § 17-3-102;
    2. Misrepresentations made or fraud committed as a holder of a license;
    3. False or misleading advertising;
    4. Solicitation of dead human bodies by the licensee, his or her agents, assistants, or employees, whether the solicitation occurs after death or while death is impending, provided that this prohibition shall not be deemed to prohibit general advertising;
    5. Employment directly or indirectly of an apprentice, agent, assistant, employee, or other person on a part-time or full-time basis or on a commission for the purpose of calling upon individuals or institutions by whose influence dead human bodies may be turned over to a particular funeral establishment;
    6. The direct or indirect payment or offer of payment of a commission by the licensee, his or her agents, assistants, or employees for the purpose of securing business;
    7. Allowing a person who is not licensed under this subchapter to execute a contract for funeral arrangements;
    8. Aiding or abetting an unlicensed person to practice embalming or funeral directing;
    9. Violation of any provision of this subchapter and § 17-29-201 et seq. [repealed];
    10. Violation of any state law or rule or of any municipal or county ordinance or regulation affecting the handling, custody, care, transportation, or final disposition of dead human bodies;
    11. Fraud or misrepresentation in obtaining or renewing a license;
    12. Refusing to properly release a dead human body to the custody of the person or entity having the legal right to effect such a release if all other applicable laws and rules have been followed by the holder of the license;
    13. Willful failure to secure a permit for the removal or burial or other disposition of a dead human body;
    14. Knowingly making a false statement on a certificate of death;
    15. Violations of applicable law or rules with regard to prearranged or prepaid funeral services or funeral merchandise. However, the proper regulatory agency for prearranged or prepaid funeral services or funeral merchandise shall have determined that such a violation has occurred;
    16. Discriminating in services because of race, creed, color, or national origin;
    17. Failure to meet continuing education requirements; or
    18. Failure to answer a complaint within the fifteen-day time period.
  2. A routine sale of a prearranged or a prefinanced funeral or of funeral merchandise in the ordinary course of business is not a violation of subdivisions (a)(4)-(7) of this section.
  3. No person licensed pursuant to this subchapter shall remove or embalm a dead human body when he or she has information indicating crime or violence of any sort in connection with the cause of death until permission of the coroner or medical examiner, or some other fully qualified person acting in such a capacity if there is no coroner or medical examiner, has first been obtained.
  4. A public officer or employee, the official of any public institution, any physician or surgeon, or any other person having a professional relationship with a decedent shall not send or cause to be sent to a funeral establishment or to a person licensed under this subchapter the remains of any deceased person without having first made due inquiry as to the desires of the authorizing agent or agents.
  5. It shall be unlawful for any person, partnership, corporation, or association that has not been licensed or registered as specified in this subchapter to transact, practice, or hold himself or herself or itself out as transacting or practicing embalming or funeral directing or operating or maintaining a funeral establishment within this state.
    1. A dead human body that is not buried or otherwise disposed of within an allotted time as determined by rule of the board shall be embalmed or stored under refrigeration as determined by the Department of Health or its successor or successors concerning the preservation of bodies.
      1. When taking custody of the dead human body under this subchapter or § 23-61-1101 et seq. or when the dead human body is stored under refrigeration as determined by the department, a funeral establishment or crematory shall maintain the dead human body in a manner that provides for complete coverage of the dead human body and prevents leakage or spillage by properly storing the dead human body in a refrigeration or preparation room at all times except during:
        1. Identification, embalming, or preparation of an unembalmed dead human body for final disposition;
        2. Restoration and dressing of a dead human body in preparation for final disposition; or
        3. Viewing during a visitation or funeral service.
      2. The funeral establishment or crematory shall treat the dead human body with dignity and respect as determined by rule of the board.
      1. If a funeral establishment or crematory is unable to secure or store a dead human body as required under subdivision (f)(1) of this section due to an unforeseen circumstance, the funeral establishment or crematory shall transfer the dead human body and notify the board and the person or entity having the legal right to arrange for the final disposition of the dead human body.
      2. The notice required under subdivision (f)(3)(A) of this section shall:
        1. Be provided within twenty-four (24) hours after the occurrence of the unforeseen circumstance; and
        2. Include the:
          1. Name and location of the facility where the dead human body is being transferred;
          2. Reason for the transfer; and
          3. Method of storage.
    4. A dead human body shall not be embalmed or artificially preserved without:
      1. The express permission of a person or entity with the legal right to arrange for the final disposition of the dead human body under the Arkansas Final Disposition Rights Act of 2009, § 20-17-102; or
      2. A court order.
    5. A funeral establishment or crematory shall not store a dead human body until final disposition at a funeral establishment or crematory without a license under this subchapter or § 23-61-1101 et seq.
    6. A funeral establishment, crematory, or transport service of human remains licensed under this subchapter shall not transport or store a dead human body together with animal remains in the same confined space.
  7. It shall be unlawful and a violation of this subchapter and § 23-61-1101 et seq. to transport or otherwise transfer by common carrier a dead human body out of the State of Arkansas unless the body has been prepared and embalmed by a licensed embalmer of this state and a transit-burial permit has been issued by the local registrar of the county where death occurred. A licensee of this state permitting this to be done shall be subject to the punishment under this subchapter and § 23-61-1101 et seq.
  8. It is a violation of this chapter for a person to engage in the practice of embalming or funeral directing or to hold himself or herself out to the public as a licensed practicing embalmer or funeral director in this state without a license.
  9. A person or entity shall not be issued a license to practice the science of embalming or to engage in the business of funeral directing for one (1) year after the license of the person or entity is revoked.

History. Acts 1983, No. 325, § 11; A.S.A. 1947, § 71-911; Acts 1997, No. 839, § 7; 2003, No. 367, § 4; 2011, No. 874, §§ 5, 6; 2015, No. 1095, §§ 31-36; 2017, No. 788, §§ 19, 20; 2019, No. 315, §§ 1398, 1399; 2019, No. 990, § 34.

Amendments. The 2011 amendment inserted “if all other applicable laws and rules have been followed by the holder of the license” in (a)(12); and substituted “the authorizing agent or agents” for “the next of kin and of the persons who may be chargeable with the funeral and expenses of the decedent. If any such kin is found, his or her authority and directions shall govern except in those instances in which the deceased made his or her arrangements” in (d).

The 2015 amendment substituted “Prohibited conduct — Sanctions” for “Violations — Prohibitions” in the section heading; rewrote (a)(7) and (b); in (f) [now (f)(1)], substituted “an allotted time to be determined by rule of the board” for “twenty-four (24) hours after death” and substituted “Department of Health” for “State Board of Health”; in (h), substituted “It is” for “It shall be unlawful and”, inserted “licensed”, and substituted “in this state without a license” for “within the State of Arkansas without being the holder of a license”; added (i); and made stylistic changes.

The 2017 amendment substituted “The State Board of Embalmers, Funeral Directors, Cemeteries, and Burial Services” for “The State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors” in (a); redesignated former (f) as (f)(1) and added (f)(2) through (f)(6); in (f)(1), substituted “as” for “to be” following “time”, deleted “as prescribed in this chapter or in § 17-29-201 et seq.” following “embalmed”, and added “or its successor or successors concerning the preservation of bodies”; in (g), substituted “§ 23-61-1101 et seq.” for “§ 17-29-201 et seq.” two times and substituted “under” for “spelled out in” in the second sentence; and made stylistic changes.

The 2019 amendment by No. 315, in (a)(10), inserted “or rule” and “of any”; and substituted “rules” for “regulation” in the first sentence of (a)(15).

The 2019 amendment by No. 990 added “listed under § 17-3-102” in (a)(1).

Case Notes

Reinstatement of License Denied.

State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors' denial of the request for licensure reinstatement of appellants, a funeral director and her funeral establishment, was not arbitrary and capricious because the record demonstrated that appellants engaged in a systematic course of committing violations, resulting in suspensions, probation, and ultimately revocation of their funeral-director and funeral-establishment licenses and that even after their licenses were revoked, appellants continued to conduct funerals in violation of the statutes. Collins v. Ark. Bd. of Embalmers & Funeral Dirs., 2013 Ark. App. 678, 430 S.W.3d 213 (2013).

Suspension.

There was no error in suspending the licensee's funeral director license for one year and imposing a $1,500 fine, because the evidence was sufficient to support the determination by the State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors that the licensee violated § 20-18-303, when the Division of Vital Records repeatedly and fruitlessly contacted the licensee to obtain the demanded information and death certificate, and despite an offer by the division to help facilitate the filing, the division was required to take the extraordinary step of issuing the death certificate under its own authority. Collins v. Ark. Bd. of Embalmers & Funeral Dirs., 2009 Ark. App. 498, 324 S.W.3d 716 (2009).

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 2 cases, 2009–2013 · leading case: Collins v. Arkansas Bd. of Embalmers & Funeral Directors, 2013 Ark. App. 678, 430 S.W.3d 213.
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Collins v. Arkansas Bd. of Embalmers & Funeral Directors, 2013 Ark. App. 678, 430 S.W.3d 213. · cites it 6× “The Board is authorized to suspend or revoke licenses of funeral directors for violations of the licensing law under section 17-29-311, and to revoke establishment licenses under section 17-29-307.”
Collins v. Arkansas Bd. of Embalmers & Funeral Directors, 324 S.W.3d 716 (Ark. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 2× “There is a qualitative difference between tardiness, even chronic tardiness, and contumacious refusal, and the evidence was sufficient to show that appellant was guilty of |Bsuch refusal, breaking several regulations in the process.”
Ark. Code Ann. § 17-29-311(a)(9): 1 case
Collins v. Arkansas Bd. of Embalmers & Funeral Directors, 2013 Ark. App. 678, 430 S.W.3d 213. “The Board is authorized to suspend or revoke licenses of funeral directors for violations of the licensing law under section 17-29-311, and to revoke establishment licenses under section 17-29-307.”
Ark. Code Ann. § 17-29-311(e): 1 case
Collins v. Arkansas Bd. of Embalmers & Funeral Directors, 2013 Ark. App. 678, 430 S.W.3d 213. “The Board is authorized to suspend or revoke licenses of funeral directors for violations of the licensing law under section 17-29-311, and to revoke establishment licenses under section 17-29-307.”
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