Assembly Bill A9169

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  9169

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            February 1, 2016
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  DenDEKKER  --  read once and referred to the
  Committee on Veterans' Affairs

AN ACT to amend the general municipal law,  in  relation  to  burial  of
  veterans of the armed forces of the United States

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision 1-a of section 148  of  the  general  municipal
law,  as added by chapter 579 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as
follows:
  1-a. (A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section,  in  the
case of [an indigent] A veteran, AS DEFINED IN SECTION FORTY-TWO HUNDRED
THREE  OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW, who died in a county or the city of New
York leaving no funds or insurance sufficient to pay funeral and  burial
expenses  of  such veteran and such veteran has no next of kin or person
of record previously designated to control his or her final  disposition
pursuant  to  section four thousand two hundred one of the public health
law, such county or the city of New York may request  a  [congressional]
CONGRESSIONALLY  chartered  veterans'  organization within the county or
the city of New York where the decedent resided at the time of death, to
engage the services of a funeral firm to conduct the funeral and  burial
services.
  (B)  Such  organization  shall  incur  the  costs associated with such
services, which shall include but not be limited to, the purchase  of  a
suitable  container  for  burial,  the  funeral  director's  prices  for
merchandise and services furnished, cost of a grave site and a  military
funeral service at the cemetery to which such body shall be interred.
  (C)  THE  COUNTY  OR  THE CITY OF NEW YORK SHALL ENDEAVOR TO MAKE SUCH
REQUESTS TO A DIVERSITY OF CONGRESSIONALLY CHARTERED VETERANS' ORGANIZA-
TIONS WITHIN THEIR  JURISDICTION,  IN  AN  EFFORT  TO  SHARE  THE  COSTS
DESCRIBED  IN  PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION IN A FAIR AND EQUITABLE
MANNER.
  (D) The state shall  reimburse  such  [congressional]  CONGRESSIONALLY
chartered  [veteran]  VETERANS' organization for such funeral and burial
service expenses for [indigent] veterans, except those  expenses  previ-

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                           LBD11401-05-6

A. 9169                             2

ously reimbursed pursuant to section one hundred forty-one of the social
services  law or any other law or those expenses reimbursable or payable
by the federal government; provided however, that the  total  reimburse-
ment  pursuant to this subdivision shall not exceed two thousand dollars
per burial.
  (E) A CONGRESSIONALLY CHARTERED VETERANS' ORGANIZATION DETERMINING  IN
GOOD  FAITH  THAT  IT CANNOT FINANCIALLY BEAR THE COSTS OF THE REQUESTED
FUNERAL AND BURIAL SERVICES AS DESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDI-
VISION, AND DECLARING IN GOOD FAITH TO THE REQUESTING COUNTY OR THE CITY
OF NEW YORK THAT THE ORGANIZATION IS UNABLE TO PAY FOR  THESE  EXPENSES,
SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED BY THE COUNTY OR THE CITY OF NEW YORK TO INITIALLY
FUND THESE REQUESTED SERVICES.
  S  2.  This  act shall take effect on the same date and same manner as
section two of chapter 579 of the laws of 2015, takes effect.