20 CSR 2120-2.060 - Funeral Directing
(1) Every person who desires to enter the
profession of funeral directing in Missouri and who is not entitled to a
license under section
333.051, RSMo shall provide the
following to the board:
(A) Proof of being at
least eighteen (18) years of age;
(B) Proof of possession of a high school
diploma or equivalent;
(C) Evidence
of being a person of good moral character;
(D) Proof of satisfactory completion of each
section of the funeral director's examination;
(E) Affidavit of completion of a twelve (12)
consecutive month apprenticeship; or official transcript and documentation
indicating he/she is a graduate of an institute of mortuary science accredited
by the American Board of Funeral Service Education or any successor
organization recognized by the United States Department for Funeral Service
Education; or has successfully completed a course in funeral directing offered
by a college accredited by a recognized national, regional, or state
accrediting body and approved by the State Board of Embalmers and Funeral
Directors; or proof of being a Missouri licensed embalmer;
(F) Completed application form provided by
the board;
(G) Proof of successful
completion of the National Board Funeral Service Arts examination or the
Missouri Funeral Service Arts examination, if applicable;
(H) Payment of all applicable fees;
(I) Satisfactory criminal history background
check as provided to the board by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Applicants
shall submit to the board the applicable fee for the criminal history
background check as determined by the Missouri State Highway Patrol;
and
(J) Any other information the
board may require.
(2)
Every person who desires to enter the profession of funeral directing in
Missouri and who is not entitled to a license under section
333.051, RSMo, shall make
application with the board for a Missouri funeral director license on the forms
provided by the board and shall pay the funeral director application fee
directly to the board. Application forms can be obtained from the board office
or the board's website at http://pr.mo.gov/embalmers.asp.
(3) Effective July 30, 2004, the funeral
director examination developed by the International Conference of Funeral
Service Examining Boards, Inc., or designee of the board, shall consist of the
Missouri Law section and the Missouri Funeral Service Arts section. In lieu of
the Missouri Funeral Service Arts examination, successful completion of the
National Board Funeral Service Arts examination results will be
accepted.
(4) Effective January 1,
2023, the funeral director examination developed by the International
Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards, Inc., or other nationally
accredited agency approved by the board, shall consist of the Missouri Law
section and the National Board Funeral Service Arts section. The board will
accept the successful score of the Missouri Arts examination taken prior to
January 1, 2023, as long as the application, including the exam score, is
submitted per the requirements as outlined in board rules.
(5) To serve as an apprentice funeral
director, the applicant shall file with the board a completed funeral director
application on the form prescribed by the board and also shall complete an
application to be registered as an apprentice funeral director on the form
prescribed by the board and pay all applicable fees. Application forms and a
list of fees can be obtained from the board office or on the board's website at
http://pr.mo.gov/embalmers.asp.
(6) The funeral director apprenticeship is
not intended as a long-term method of practicing as a funeral director in the
absence of progress toward licensure. Accordingly, effective February 28, 2010,
an apprentice shall not be allowed to register with the board for more than two
(2) apprenticeship periods that begin on or after February 28, 2010, unless
otherwise approved by the board for good cause.
(7) Upon registration and payment in full of
all applicable fees, the board shall issue the apprentice funeral director
applicant a funeral director apprentice registration. This registration
authorizes the apprentice registrant to engage in the practice of funeral
directing under the supervision of a Missouri licensed funeral director. The
funeral director apprentice registration, or a copy thereof, shall be
displayed, at all times, in a conspicuous location accessible to the public at
each establishment where the apprentice is working.
(8) The funeral director apprentice
registration authorizes the registrant to engage in the practice of funeral
directing only during the period of apprenticeship. Once the apprenticeship is
successfully completed as defined in this rule, the funeral director apprentice
registration shall become null and void. Any Missouri licensed funeral director
who allows a former apprentice who has completed his/her apprenticeship to
engage in the practice of funeral directing before that apprentice is fully
licensed shall be subject to discipline for misconduct under section 333.121.2,
RSMo.
(9) Each registered funeral
director apprentice shall provide to the board, on the application prescribed
by the board, the name(s), location(s), and license number(s) of each funeral
establishment(s) where they are serving as an apprentice. The funeral director
apprenticeship may be served at a funeral establishment licensed by a state,
other than Missouri, upon submission of proof to the board that the
out-of-state funeral home is licensed for the care and preparation for burial
and transportation of human dead in this state or another state which has
established standards for admission to practice funeral directing equal to, or
more stringent than, the requirement for admission to practice funeral
directing in this state. The funeral director apprenticeship shall be served
under the supervision of a Missouri licensed funeral director. If the funeral
director apprentice changes funeral establishments during the course of the
apprenticeship, the apprentice shall notify the board, on the form prescribed
by the board, of the name(s), location(s), and funeral establishment(s) license
number of the new apprenticeship location within ten (10) business days after
the change has been made.
(10)
Successful completion of a funeral director apprenticeship shall consist of the
following:
(A) Completed service as an
apprentice funeral director for a period consisting of at least twelve (12)
consecutive months in a Function C funeral establishment; and
(B) Filing with the board a notarized
affidavit(s) signed by the apprentice and his/her supervisor(s) that he/she has
arranged for and conducted a minimum of ten (10) funeral ceremonies under the
supervision of a Missouri licensed funeral director.
(11) An apprentice will be eligible to take
the funeral director examination after completion of the twelve (12)
consecutive month period of apprenticeship.
(12) An applicant will be deemed to have
successfully completed the funeral director examination when a score of
seventy-five (75) or better is achieved on each section. If the applicant fails
a section of the examination, the applicant shall be permitted to retake that
section of the examination.
(13) All
notifications for the funeral director's examination shall be in writing and
received by the board at least forty-five (45) days prior to the date the
candidate plans to sit for the examination.
(14) A college accredited by a recognized
national, state, or regional accrediting body may seek the approval of the
State Board of Embalmers and Funeral Directors for a course of study in funeral
directing by submitting a description of the program, the college catalog
listing the course of study, and evidence that the program has been approved to
be offered in that institution by the administration of the college and the
Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education.
(15) An applicant shall be exempt from the
requirement of successful completion of the Missouri Law examination if the
applicant has successfully completed the Missouri Law examination for another
Missouri license within the jurisdiction of the board if the current license
remains in active status.
(16) Any
funeral director that allows an unlicensed person to make at-need arrangements
for the transportation or removal of a dead human body for or on behalf of the
funeral director shall supervise the unlicensed person and shall be responsible
for the conduct of the unlicensed person. This section shall not be construed
to allow any unlicensed person to perform any other act for which a license is
required by Chapter 333, RSMo.
(17)
A Missouri licensed funeral director shall be present and personally shall
supervise or conduct each funeral ceremony conducted by or from a Missouri
licensed funeral establishment. A violation of this section will be considered
misconduct in the practice of funeral directing.
(18) A Missouri licensed funeral director
shall be present and personally shall supervise any disinterment, interment,
entombment, or cremation as defined in
20 CSR
2120-1.040 conducted by a Missouri licensed funeral
establishment. However, nothing in this rule shall be interpreted as requiring
the presence of a Missouri licensed funeral director if the person(s) having
the right to control the incidents of burial request otherwise. If the
disinterment does not require legal notification to the county coroner or
medical examiner, a funeral director's presence may not be required. A
violation of this section shall be deemed misconduct in the practice of funeral
directing.
(A) Once the body has been
delivered to a cemetery for the purpose of interment or to a crematory for the
purpose of cremation and after any funeral ceremonies have been complete, the
Missouri licensed funeral director is not required to stay with the
body.
(B) Nothing in this rule shall
be interpreted as requiring the Missouri licensed funeral director to leave the
cemetery before disposition is complete. Furthermore, nothing in this rule
shall be interpreted as relieving the Missouri licensed funeral director of any
responsibilities he/she has under his/her contract with the person(s) having
the right to control the incidents of burial.
(19) Any licensed funeral establishment or
funeral director that makes arrangements for an unlicensed person to transport
dead human bodies within the state of Missouri, or out of this state, is
responsible for the conduct of the unlicensed person.
(20) A funeral director or funeral
establishment licensed in another state that enters the state of Missouri
solely for the purpose of transporting a dead human body through Missouri to
another state, country, or territory shall not be deemed to be in the practice
of funeral directing or required to obtain a license from the board. This
regulation does not exempt any person or entity from complying with any
applicable statutes or regulations governing the transportation of dead human
bodies, including, but not limited to, Chapters 193 and 194, RSMo.
(21) A Missouri licensed funeral
establishment or funeral director shall not allow an unlicensed person to make
the following at-need arrangements with the person having the right to control
the incidents of disposition:
(A) Arrangements
for final disposition, supervision of visitation and memorial ceremony, grave
attendance, cremation, entering into a contractual relationship for performance
of any other funeral services;
(B)
Embalming, cremation, care, or preparation; and
(C) Nothing in this subsection shall be
construed to apply to persons exempt from Chapter 333,
RSMo.
(22) The taking of
preliminary information by an unlicensed person will not be construed as the
making of at-need funeral arrangements under this rule.
(23) No temporary Missouri funeral director
license authorized under section 333.041.7, RSMo, will be issued until the
board has been advised as to the location of the Missouri licensed funeral
establishment at which the temporary funeral director's license will be used.
The holder of the temporary license shall be authorized to only work at the
Missouri licensed funeral establishment(s) where the deceased and/or disabled
Missouri licensed funeral director was authorized to work. Violation of this
rule will be deemed unauthorized practice of funeral directing.
(24) The business and practice of funeral
directing may be conducted only from a fixed place or establishment which has
been licensed by the board.
(25)
Limited License.
(A) A person holding a
limited license shall only be allowed to work in a funeral establishment that
is licensed as a Function B establishment (cremation only). A limited funeral
director shall only engage in the activities of funeral directing authorized
for a Function B funeral establishment.
(B) Every person desiring a limited license
shall provide the following to the board:
1.
Proof of being at least eighteen (18) years of age;
2. Proof of possession of a high school
diploma or its equivalent;
3.
Evidence of being a person of good moral character;
4. Proof of successful completion by
achieving a score of seventy-five (75) or better on the Missouri Law
examination;
5. Completed
application form as provided by the board;
6. Payment of applicable fees;
7. Payment of any fee charged by the Missouri
Highway Patrol for a criminal history background check; and
8. Any other information the board may
require.
(C) Every limited
licensee shall provide the board with the name, location, and license number of
each Function B funeral establishment where he/she is employed.
(D) A limited licensee shall be obligated to
comply with all Missouri laws governing funeral directors subject to the
limitations imposed by this rule and section 333.042.2, RSMo.
(E) If a limited licensee desires to obtain a
full funeral director's license, the licensee shall be required to complete an
apprenticeship consisting of at least twelve (12) consecutive months as
required by section 333.042.2, RSMo, and accompanying regulations or fulfill
the education requirements set forth in section 333.042.3, RSMo. The limited
licensee shall also provide to the board proof of successful completion of the
remaining sections of the funeral director examination as required by these
regulations. The applicant shall be exempt from the requirement of successful
completion of the Missouri Law section if the applicant has successfully
completed the Missouri Law section within twelve (12) months of the date that
the board receives the new application.
(26) All certificates, registrations, and
licenses, or duplicate copies thereof, issued by the State Board of Embalmers
and Funeral Directors shall be displayed at all times in a conspicuous location
accessible to the public in each office(s) or place(s) of business where they
work, for inspection by any duly authorized agent of the board.
(27) Should an individual desire to obtain a
Missouri funeral director's license after his/her license has become void under
section 333.081.3, RSMo, the individual shall be required to make new
application and pay all applicable fees to the board. No previous
apprenticeship, application, or examination will be considered for the new
application. However, the board shall accept the successful completion of the
National Board Funeral Service Arts or the Missouri Funeral Service Arts, if
applicable, examination for new application.
(28) A Missouri licensed funeral director may
engage in the practice of funeral directing in the state of Missouri only in
Missouri licensed funeral establishments. Each Missouri licensed funeral
director shall inform the board in writing, in a timely manner, of each
Missouri licensed funeral establishment name(s), location(s), and license
number(s) where the Missouri licensed funeral director is engaged in funeral
directing.
(29) A Missouri licensed
funeral director has the ongoing obligation to keep the board informed if the
licensee has been finally adjudicated or found guilty, or entered a plea of
guilty or nolo contendere, in a criminal prosecution under the
laws of any state or of the United States, whether or not sentence was imposed.
This information shall be provided to the board within thirty (30) days of
being finally adjudicated or found guilty.
(30) Person Deemed to be Engaged in the
Practice of Funeral Directing.
(A) No person
shall be deemed by the board to be engaged in the practice of funeral directing
or to be operating a funeral establishment if the person prepares, arranges, or
carries out the burial of the dead human body of a member of one's own family
or next of kin as provided by section
194.119, RSMo, provided that the
activity is not conducted as a business or for business purposes.
(B) The board shall not deem a person to be
engaged in the practice of funeral directing or to be operating a funeral
establishment if the person prepares, arranges, or carries out the burial of a
dead human body pursuant to the religious beliefs, tenets, or practices of a
religious group, sect, or organization, provided that the activity is not
conducted as a business or for business purposes.
(31) The rules in this division are declared
severable. If any rule, or section of a rule, is held invalid by a court of
competent jurisdiction or by the Administrative Hearing Commission, the
remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect unless otherwise
determined by a court of competent jurisdiction or by the Administrative
Hearing Commission.
Notes
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