Conn. Gen. Stat. § 19a-297 (2025)

The selectmen of towns, cemetery associations or ecclesiastical societies, having the care of cemeteries, may (1) enact bylaws providing for the care and management of all burial lots, and the protection of all shrubs, trees, fences and monuments thereon, provided no such bylaws shall (A) require or result in the removal or banishing of any undamaged United States flag or armed forces service marker, including flagholders provided by veterans organizations, from any grave site, or (B) restrict the placement of United States flags on the graves of veterans from the Friday before Memorial Day in each year until the Monday after the fourth of July, and (2) appoint superintendents and sextons for such cemeteries. Such superintendents and sextons shall have the exclusive right to direct the opening of graves, and no grave shall be opened in any cemetery except with the consent of the superintendent or sexton. Any person to whom such bylaws have been made known who violates the same shall be fined not more than ten dollars. The incorporators, organizers or members of any cemetery association or, if no incorporators, organizers or members are living, the owners of burial lots therein, by a majority vote, may, at any meeting called for that purpose, amend its articles of association or its bylaws.

(1949 Rev., S. 4710; 1957, P.A. 13, S. 92; 1967, P.A. 161, S. 1; P.A. 79-105; P.A. 80-483, S. 79, 186; P.A. 96-209, S. 1; P.A. 09-5, S. 1; P.A. 13-44, S. 2.)

History: 1967 act added proviso re flag or service marker; P.A. 79-105 added flagholders provided by veterans organizations in proviso; P.A. 80-483 made technical grammar corrections; Sec. 19-148 transferred to Sec. 19a-297 in 1983; P.A. 96-209 added “or members” after “organizers”; P.A. 09-5 designated existing provisions re bylaws as Subdiv. (1), designated existing bylaw prohibition therein as Subpara. (A), added Subpara. (B) therein re bylaw prohibition against restriction on placement of United States flags on veterans' graves, designated existing provision re appointment of superintendents and sextons as Subdiv. (2) and made technical changes, effective May 4, 2009; P.A. 13-44 amended Subdiv. (1)(B) by changing dates for placing flags on veterans' graves from Saturday before Memorial Day to Friday before Memorial Day.

See Sec. 7-66 re duties of sextons.

See Sec. 7-71 re required reporting of sexton's name to town registrar.

See Sec. 19a-309 re headstones at soldiers' graves.

Annotations to former section 19-148:

Bylaw forbidding any person to cut herbage without permission upheld; section applies to a stock corporation. 78 C. 90.

Cited. 29 CS 292.

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