SB98

Senate Bill 98 amends Arkansas law regarding benefit certificates issued by burial associations. It establishes specific payment percentages for funeral homes that perform services when those funeral homes are not the 'contract funeral home' originally designated in a member's certificate. These percentages vary depending on the date the membership was issued, ranging from agreements defined in the original certificates for older memberships to 70% or 80% for memberships issued between 1967 and 1987. The bill also clarifies that if a servicing funeral home provides a credit for the full certificate amount, the deceased member's family is not entitled to further refunds or compensation from the burial association. Finally, the bill grants the servicing funeral home the discretion to decide whether to retain the disbursed burial association funds or return them to the family.