Sangamon Sun

The General Assembly passed Senate Bill 2643 with bipartisan support yesterday. State Representative Wayne Rosenthal (R-Morrisonville) and State Representative Mike Coffey (R-Springfield), who sponsored the bill in the House, assert that it will safeguard families from funeral home directors mishandling human remains.

“I’m happy this bill had bipartisan support in efforts to hold funeral home directors responsible for mishandling human remains and engaging in criminal acts,” said Rep. Rosenthal. “The Carlinville funeral home investigation led to this legislation, and I look forward to the Governor’s signature on this bill.”

SB2643 mandates that embalmers or funeral directors adhere to identification rules and regulations concerning the handling and storage of human remains. Funeral homes are required to handle human remains with a unique identifier and maintain chain of custody documentation.

A House Amendment stipulates that any individual who engages in funeral directing or embalming without a license is subject to a Class A misdemeanor. This penalty also applies to the mishandling or misidentification of human remains.

“I fully support this legislation because families should never have to wonder if they received the proper remains of a loved one,” said Rep. Coffey. “Funeral home directors who conduct criminal acts must be held accountable, and this bill will ensure that Illinois families are protected from criminal acts within funeral homes.”

SB2643 passed unanimously through both Houses and must return to the Senate for concurrence before being signed into law by the Governor.