RULE §181.6: Disinterment (a) Except as is authorized for a justice of the peace acting as coroner or medical examiner under the Code of Criminal Procedure, Chapter 49, remains may not be removed from a cemetery except on written order of the State Registrar or the State Registrar’s designee. (b) The licensed funeral director or professional archeologist to whom the disinterment permit is issued shall be responsible for the proper conduct of the disinterment and removal. (c) The State Registrar shall issue a disinterment permit so as to provide a copy for the State Registrar, a copy retained by the funeral director or professional archeologist to whom issued, a copy filed with the sexton or person in charge of the cemetery in which the disinterment is to be made, and a copy for the Local Registrar of the district in which the death occurred. The State Registrar and the Local Registrar shall file the disinterment permit as an amendment to the death certificate and consider it part of the death certificate. The State Registrar and the Local Registrar shall include a copy of the disinterment permit with any future certified copies of the death certificate that are issued. (d) A disinterment permit shall not be required if a body is to be disinterred and reinterred in the same cemetery. (e) A disinterment permit shall not be required to remove cremains. (f) Cremation is considered to be a final disposition of remains. (g) A disinterred body must be transported in a container which insures against the seepage of fluid or the escape of offensive odors. When shipped by common carrier, a disinterred body must be enclosed in an airtight metal casket encased in a strong outside shipping case, or in a sound casket encased in an airtight metal or metal-lined shipping case. This requirement shall not apply if the disinterred remains involve no soft parts. (h) The disinterment permit issued by the State Registrar shall serve as the authority to disinter, transport by means other than a common carrier, and re-inter a body within this state. (See §181.2 of this title (relating to Assuming Custody of Body).) (i) A body kept in a receiving vault shall not be regarded as a disinterred body until after the expiration of 30 days. (j) All disinterred remains kept in receiving vaults shall be thoroughly embalmed in a manner approved by the Texas Funeral Service Commission and shall be enclosed in a permanently sealed casket. (k) The licensed funeral director or embalmer requesting a disinterment permit shall be responsible for obtaining a written consent of the cemetery, the owner of the plot, and the decedent’s next-of-kin. (l) The licensed funeral director or embalmer requesting a disinterment permit shall be responsible for obtaining a written consent order from the county judge to disinter a body from a grave when the cemetery, plot owner, and the decedent’s next-of-kin are unknown. RULE §181.7: Fetal Death (Stillbirth) (a) A certificate of fetal death shall be filed for any fetus weighing 350 grams or more, or if the weight is unknown, a fetus aged 20 weeks or more as calculated from the start date of the last normal menstrual period to the date of delivery. (b) A certificate of fetal death shall be considered properly filed: (1) When all of the items thereon have been satisfactorily and definitely answered; and (2) When the certificate has been presented for filing to the local registrar of the registration district in which the fetal death (stillbirth) occurred or the fetus was found. A certificate of fetal death (stillbirth) shall be filed with the local registrar within five days after the date of fetal death (stillbirth).
(c) The funeral director, or person acting as such, shall furnish the sexton or other person in charge of a cemetery with the information required. (d) If a county elects to expedite death certificates pursuant to Texas Health and Safety Code §193.0025, the funeral director, or person acting as such, who assumes custody of the dead body or fetus will work with the Local Registrar to ensure that a copy of the decedent’s death certificate is issued to the requestor not later than 48 hours after the requestor’s request if all statutory requirements are met. The department, using existing resources and programs to the extent possible, shall provide technical support. RULE §181.3: Transportation of Dead Bodies (a) Bodies shipped by common carrier. (1) Any body shipped by common carrier must be placed in either: (A) A sound casket enclosed in a strong outside shipping case; or (B) A metal container specifically designed for this purpose. (2) If the body is not embalmed or is in a state of decomposition, it may be shipped only after enclosure in an air-tight metal casket encased in a strong outside shipping case or in a sound casket encased in an air- tight metal or metal lined shipping case. (3) Shipping containers and requirements for the shipping of dead bodies must meet or exceed any requirement imposed by the shipping company, the receiving state or foreign country. (4) When any body is to be transported by common carrier, the burial-transit permit shall be enclosed in a strong envelope and attached to the shipping case. No separate transit permit shall be required. (b) Bodies transported by means other than common carrier. (1) Any body transported by means other than a common carrier must be encased in a container which insures against seepage of fluid and the escape of offensive odors, provided, however, that bodies transported by a licensed funeral director in a vehicle used for such purpose need not be so encased. (2) If a dead body is to be transported by means other than a common carrier and for a purpose other than preparation or storage, the report of death form shall be enclosed in a strong envelope and attached to the container in which the body is enclosed. (c) Duties of transportation companies. No transportation company shall accept any body for shipment until it has been ascertained that a properly completed burial-transit permit accompanies the body. RULE §181.4: Preservation of Bodies No human body may be held in any place or be in transit more than 24 hours after death and pending final disposition unless either maintained at a temperature within the range of 34 degrees 40 degrees Fahrenheit, or is embalmed by a licensed embalmer in a manner approved by the Texas Funeral Service Commission, or by an embalmer licensed to practice in the state where death occurred or is encased in a container which insures against seepage of fluid and the escape of offensive odors. RULE §181.5: Embalming and Standards of the Funeral Industry (a) The department adopts by reference the rules of the Texas Funeral Service Commission in 22 TAC §203.16, covering minimum standards for embalming. (b) The rules adopted by reference in subsection (a) of this section shall not require or infer a requirement for the embalming of a dead body prior to burial or cremation.
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Book Code: FTX1624
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