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INDUSTRY NEWS Sen. Dodd Introduces VA Marker Bill for Private Cemeteries Last week, Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT) introduced S. 909 to expand on legislation enacted in 2002 whereby veterans who were interred in private cemeteries where the grave was already marked could receive a government-issued marker for placement as a second marker on the grave. The 2002 law, the Veterans Improvement Act, established this burial benefit as a five-year pilot program and applied only to veterans who died on or after September 11, 2001. This new benefit met with a mixed reaction from private cemeteries because not all permit a second marker on the grave site. S. 909 would extend the second marker benefit back to 1990 when it had been abolished by Congress. Dodd stated, "Until 1990, moreover, the family of a deceased veteran could receive reimbursement for a VA headstone, a VA marker or a private headstone. However, in the name of cost-cutting, measures were taken to prevent the VA from providing markers to those families that had purchased gravestones out of their own pockets. In my view, this measure was a serious injustice." Despite Dodd's reference to the repealed marker cash reimbursement, his legislation does not address the restoration of this benefit. However, Reps. Shelley Berkley (D-NV) and Steve Miller (R-FL) have stated that they will introduce legislation to restore both the plot and the marker cash allowances as they applied to private cemeteries. (See the April 26 edition of ICFA WIRELESS for details.) IRS Private Letter Ruling Permits Tax-Exempt Cemetery with Insurance Subsidiary Last week, the Internal Revenue Service made public a private letter ruling, PLR 200518081, which examines whether a cemetery exempt from federal taxation under section 501(c)(13) can own and operate a for-profit subsidiary company that sells "final expense" insurance products. The IRS also ruled whether dividends from the subsidiary would be taxable to the cemetery as unrelated business income. According to the fact situation, the insurance subsidiary would have a board separate from the cemetery although two of the five board members would be from the cemetery, and the subsidiary would maintain its own financial system, among other points. The IRS held that the insurance subsidiary was engaged in a business purpose not attributed to the cemetery nor did the cemetery control the day-to-day operations of the subsidiary. Therefore, IRS found that the creation, ownership and operation of the subsidiary by the cemetery would not cause the cemetery to lose its tax-exempt status. Also, the IRS held that the subsidiary's dividends are excluded from the computation of unrelated business income tax by the cemetery. Private letter rulings are directed only to the organizations requesting them and may not be used or cited by others as precedent. However, private letter rulings are useful as as an indication of the IRS's thinking on an issue. ICFA members who would like a copy of PLR 200518081 should contact Bob Fells at rfells@icfa.org. ICFA Obtains Two Years of Funeral-Related Consumer Complaints from FTC The ICFA recently filed a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) request with the Federal Trade Commission in order to obtain all funeral-related consumer complaints that were filed with the FTC during the 24 months from January 2003 through December 2004. This action marks the fourth time since 1998 that the ICFA has obtained and analyzed consumer complaints submitted to the FTC in an effort to determine where the public is experiencing problems with funeral homes, cemeteries and related businesses. The FTC encourages consumers to file complaints through its toll-free phone service, fax and email, and estimates that it receives more than 1 million complaints annually dealing with a variety of industries and issues. ICFA staff will be reviewing the complaints and provide an analysis of its findings, which will be shared with FTC staff. A preliminary review has indicated that there are approximately 500 complaints for the two-year period, but a number of them involve businesses filing complaints concerning their competitors. The total volume of complaints are similar to earlier FOIA responses and do not indicate, at least preliminarily, an increase in complaints over a comparable time period. ICFA members will receive the results of the review upon its completion, estimated in late summer. Consumer Advocacy Group Files Antitrust Litigation Against Big 3, Batesville As widely reported in the news last week, Funeral Consumer Alliance, together with several individual consumers, filed a private antitrust lawsuit in a northern California federal district court against Service Corporation International, Alderwoods, Stewart Enterprises and Hillenbrand Industries/Batesville Casket Company. The litigation seeks standing as a class action on behalf of consumers throughout the United States who were allegedly overcharged for caskets during the last four years. Plaintiffs claim that defendants violated federal and state antitrust laws through alleged price-fixing agreements among themselves, alleged group boycotts and engaging in an alleged conspiracy to monopolize the casket market to the detriment of consumers and independent casket dealers. The complaint also identifies alleged "co-conspirators" that have not thus far been named as defendants, including Aurora Casket Company, The York Group, and the National Funeral Directors Association. The complaint's only reference to the ICFA was to note its open competition policy, stating that the ICFA criticizes state laws that limit casket sales exclusively to licensed funeral directors. Plaintiffs seek a permanent injunction to restrain alleged illegal conduct, and treble damages plus interest as compensation for overcharges, among other forms of relief. Typically, antitrust litigation of this scope proceeds slowly over a long period with a number of procedural challenges to be decided by the court prior to focusing on the issues. Such challenges include whether the plaintiffs have standing to sue and whether the complaint should be dismissed for a failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. ICFA NEWS 'Cemetery Ops' Conference Set for Summer in Biloxi The ICFA 2005 Cemetery Operations & Maintenance Conference will be held as part of the Southern Cemetery and Funeral Association Annual Convention, July 31 - August 2 at the Beau Rivage Resort & Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi. The ICFA Cemetery Operations Committee is planning a roundtable session that will offer a wide-ranging discussion of cemetery operations and maintenance best practices. Additional program highlights will include a trade show; presentations by Gary O'Sullivan, Dan Garrison, Mike Burke and Matt Kreidenweis; a "Sales School" featuring Gary O'Sullivan; and numerous networking functions. In addition to the SCFA and the ICFA, the Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi cemetery associations will be holding their joint Annual Conventions as part of this "can't miss" event. ICFA members can attend the event at the SCFA member registration fee of $249 prior to June 29 ($299 after that date). The conference hotel, the Beau Rivage, overlooks the beaches of the Mississippi Gulf and is located just minutes from Biloxi's Casino Row, in addition to offering its own floating casino facility. Boasting 12 restaurants and bars, as well as shops, a spa and a marina, the Beau Rivage has been named one of Travel & Leisure magazine's top hotels. For a complete conference program schedule and to register, visit www.scfa.info/events.html or call Mary Perl at (251) 634-3434. The Network: 140 Members and Growing So you'd love to go to a national cemetery and funeral service conference, but your company just doesn't have the funds. Now you can get the networking benefits of participating in an industry-wide conference with NO cost and NO time away from the office. The Network offers current ICFA members an easy, free way to share questions and answers to everyday on-the-job challenges. Recent discussions have examined issues such as working with the Muslim community, distance between burial sites, direct mail marketing, the growing popularity of geocaching at cemeteries, recruiting staff and more. Ideal for smaller companies with smaller budgets, The Network has 140 members and is growing steadily. Joining is simple and costs nothing. For details, visit www.icfa.org/network. ICFA Sale Item: 'Rest in Peace' by Prof. Gary Laderman For a limited time, the ICFA is offering "Rest in Peace: A Cultural History of Death and the Funeral Home in Twentieth-Century America" by Professor Gary Laderman for a discounted price. This 248-page exploration of modern-day funeral service belongs in every cemetery and funeral home library. Scholar and author Gary Laderman offers an independent, positive perspective on the profession which directly rebuts Jessica Mitford's negative assertions and in fact finds that "funeral directors are highly respected figures whose services reflect the community's deepest needs and wishes." Among his research: the value of the open casket, the need for memorialization with cremation, the historical relationship between funeral directors and the clergy, Hollywood's portrayal of the industry and much more. Regularly priced at $30, the book is available from May 10 - 23 for just $16.99, plus $4 shipping. To order, call 1-800-645-7700, ext. 216. And more ... The ICFA has secured music performance rights from the three music licensing agencies: ASCAP, BMI and SESAC. ICFA Music License members can now become fully licensed for the annual price of $238 per location, with no additional fees. Membership is open to any company in the cemetery and funeral service profession in the United States. Companies that are already members of the ICFA in another category must acquire the additional membership category (a Music License Membership) to be eligible for the Music License benefit. The ICFA Store allows members to purchase the latest ICFA resources and training products online. Some products are available for immediate direct download, including the newly released Wirthlin Report on consumer attitudes and article packages on cremation, cemetery and funeral home valuations and trust funds. The ICFA News Page takes you to sources throughout the world for industry news and updates. It brings you the most comprehensive selection of funeral service and cemetery news available anywhere, along with frequently updated general news items related to national and world events. The News Page reports the news before anyone else and is one of the most visited page on the ICFA Web site. Stop in each day and you'll see why. The ICFA Internet Expo is the largest online exposition in the cemetery and funeral service industry. Cemetery and funeral home owners and operators will find 300+ providers in more than 100 product and service categories. Exhibit space is provided as a free, exclusive benefit to all ICFA supplier and professional members. Check it out today! Need a labor relations and employment law attorney? Check out ICFA's HR Law Benefit program offering members no-cost telephone legal consultations, paid for by the ICFA via an exclusive retainer agreement. ICFA members now also have access to an attorney for tax-related questions regarding trust earnings, care fund allocations, capital gains, investments and more. The ICFA has retained Leslie Schneider, CPA, a tax attorney with Ivins, Phillips & Barker in Washington, D.C., for telephone consultations for up to 20 minutes with no obligation. To take advantage of this member benefit, call Schneider at (202) 393-7600. The ICFA and Applied Merchant Systems of Chicago, Illinois, currently offer members a Credit Card Processing Program with a special low discount rate of 1.75 percent, with no per transaction processing fee. This new benefit makes it less expensive for cemeteries, funeral homes, memorial designers and related businesses to accommodate customers who wish to pay via credit card. For more information, call 1-800-675-6573. The ICFA Insurance Program, administered by Driver Alliant, allows members to purchase commercial property and casualty insurance -- including general liability, commercial property, automobile liability and physical damage, umbrella liability, professional liability, workers compensation, employee benefits and more -- at rates they probably would not be able to afford on their own. To unsubscribe from the ICFA Wireless: Send an e-mail with "unsubscribe" in the subject line to: wireless@icfa.org. Please include your name and company name in the body of the e-mail. International Cemetery and Funeral Association 1895 Preston White Drive, Suite 220 Reston, VA 20191 1-800-645-7700 (703) 391-8400 Fax: (703) 391-8416 www.icfa.org Copyright 2005 International Cemetery and Funeral Association. |
