Code of Maine Rules
10 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
146 - OFFICE OF DATA, RESEARCH AND VITAL STATISTICS
Chapter 1 - TRANSPORTATION, STORAGE AND FINAL DISPOSITION OF DEAD BODIES
Section 146-1-2 - Burial-Transit Permit

a. A burial-transit permit is required for any transport of a dead body, except transport by a funeral director having custody of the dead body from the site where death occurred (or where the funeral director received custody) to an establishment of a funeral director.

b. A burial-transit permit is required for any transport of a dead body by an authorized person.

c. A burial-transit permit is required for any transport of a dead body from the establishment(s) of the funeral director to another location.

d. A burial-transit permit issued by the municipal clerk or subregistrar, or by the appropriate authority in another state or foreign country, shall authorize final disposition of the dead body by burial or entombment without further permit, and after presentation of a completed death certificate and a medical examiner's release, shall authorize cremation, burial at sea, use by medical science, or removal from the State.

e. Cremated remains of a dead body may be transported, buried, or otherwise disposed of without a burial-transit permit.

f. Parts of a living human being such as an amputated arm or leg may be buried or cremated without a permit.

g. A burial-transit permit is required for temporary storage of a dead body for more than 14 days and up to eight months. Storage for more than eight months shall be treated as final disposition for the purposes of this rule.

h. A burial-transit permit is required for disinterment of a dead body, as specified in section 5.

i. The circumstances under which a burial-transit permit is required for transport or final disposition of a dead fetus are specified in section 7.

a. A burial-transit permit may be issued by the municipal clerk or subregistrar of the municipality where death occurred or where an establishment of the funeral director having custody of the dead body is located.

b. A copy of each burial-transit permit issued by a subregistrar, together with a copy of the completed death certificate or report of death, shall be transmitted to the clerk who appointed the subregistrar at the earliest opening of the municipal office after the date of issue.

c. A burial-transit permit may be issued by a subregistrar only when the municipal office is closed or the municipal clerk or deputy clerk is not available.

a. No burial-transit permit shall be issued to anyone other than a licensed funeral director or his agent or until the municipal clerk or subregistrar is satisfied that the applicant for a burial-transit permit is an authorized person as defined by M.R.S.A., Title 22, §2846, and receives a completed death certificate which indicates that the physician or medical examiner has personally examined the body after death.

b. A burial-transit permit shall be issued to a funeral director or authorized person for transport, storage or burial within the State on presentation of a completed death certificate which meets the requirement of subparagraph a above.

c. A burial-transit permit shall be issued to a funeral director for transport, storage, or burial within the State on presentation of a report of death.

d. A burial-transit permit shall be issued to a funeral director or authorized person for temporary storage of a dead body transported into this State for final disposition on presentation of a permit issued by the duly constituted authority at the place of death.

e. A burial-transit permit shall be issued to a funeral director or authorized person for cremation, burial at sea, or use by medical science only upon presentation of a signed medical examiner's release and a completed death certificate which meets the requirements of subparagraph a above.

f. A burial-transit permit shall be issued to a funeral director or authorized person for removal from the State on presentation of a signed medical examiner's release and a completed death certificate.

g. A burial-transit permit shall be issued to a funeral director for removal from the State on presentation of a signed medical examiner's release and a report of death.

h. A burial-transit permit for disposition of a dead fetus shall be issued to a funeral director or authorized person for final disposition as defined in § 1 sub-§ I on presentation of a completed death certificate.

i. A fee for handling the burial-transit permit, as specified in 30-A MRS §2652 (3)(B), shall be paid to the municipal clerk who issues the permit.

j. Unless the fee for handling the burial-transit permit is paid through the municipal general assistance program under 22 MRS chapter 1161, a $5.00 fee must be collected for each burial-transit permit for deposit into the Cemetery Preservation Commission Fund, in accordance with 13 MRS §1374.

a. A copy of the burial-transit permit shall be retained by the issuing clerk until a properly endorsed copy is received following final disposition, as specified in sub-§ B.2. The unendorsed copy may then be destroyed.

b. A copy of the signed medical examiner's release, if required, shall be retained permanently by the municipal clerk who issues the burial-transit permit.

c. A copy of the death certificate shall be retained permanently by the municipal clerk who issues the burial-transit permit.

d. A copy of the report of death, if used, shall be retained by the clerk who issues the burial-transit permit and by the clerk of the municipality where death occurred until a copy of the death certificate is received. The report of death may then be destroyed. If a death certificate is not received within 21 days, the clerk of the municipality where death occurred shall report the matter to the state registrar for investigation.

a. When final disposition is by burial at sea, use by medical science, or removal from the state, the death certificate shall show the disposition of the body as "burial at sea", "medical science", or "removal". The date on which such burial or removal took place shall be entered on the death certificate as the "date of disposition". The name and location of the final destination (nearest port for burial at sea; name of medical school; name of out-of-state cemetery) shall be entered as the name and location of "cemetery or crematory".

b. The funeral director or authorized person shall ensure that a completed death certificate is registered, by filing with the clerk of the municipality where death occurred, within three days after the day on which death occurred and prior to the removal of the body from the state.

c. Certified copies of a death certificate may be made only from records for which the registration process is complete.

a. If final disposition is by burial or cremation, the burial-transit permit shall be endorsed by the person in charge of the cemetery or crematory, or by an official of the municipality in which the cemetery or crematory is located.

b. If the dead body is buried at sea, removed to a medical school or transported out of state, a copy of the burial-transit permit shall accompany the body to the place of final disposition. The funeral director or authorized person shall complete all pertinent items and endorse the permit.

c. If the dead body is stored temporarily in a vault, the burial-transit permit shall be endorsed by the person in charge of the vault as specified in § 6. The permit shall be retained by the funeral director or authorized person until the body is removed from the vault for final disposition. The permit shall accompany the body to the place of final disposition and be endorsed there as specified in paragraphs a and b above.

d. If the burial-transit permit is for disinterment, it shall be endorsed by the person in charge of the cemetery or vault from which the body has been removed, or by an official of the municipality in which the cemetery or vault is located, in addition to the endorsements required by sub-§ B.1, paragraphs a, b, and c, above.

a. After endorsement as specified in sub-§ B.1 above, and within seven days after the date of disposition, the funeral director or authorized person shall present a copy of the endorsed permit to the clerk of the municipality where burial or cremation took place, unless a person in charge of the cemetery or crematory is present. In such case, the person in charge of the cemetery or crematory shall present a copy of the endorsed permit to the municipal clerk.

b. The funeral director or authorized person shall present a copy of the endorsed burial-transit permit to the clerk of the municipality where death occurred and to the clerk of the municipality in which the permit was issued.

c. If the burial-transit permit was not issued by the clerk of the municipality where death occurred, then a fee for handling the burial-transit permit, as specified in 30-A MRS, §2652, sub-§ 3(B), shall be paid to the municipal clerk at the place of death by the funeral director.

d. Unless the fee for handling the burial transit is paid for through the municipal general assistance program under 22 MRS chapter 1161, a $5.00 fee must be collected for each burial-transit permit for deposit into the Cemetery Preservation Commission Fund, in accordance with 13 MRS §1374.

a. If an endorsed copy of a burial-transit permit for final disposition is not returned to the municipal clerk who issued it within 21 days after the date of death, the clerk shall report the matter to the state registrar and the Board of Funeral Service for investigation.

b. If an endorsed copy of a burial-transit permit for final disposition is not returned to the clerk of the municipality where death occurred within 21 days after the date of death, the clerk shall report the matter to the state registrar and the Board of Funeral Service for investigation.

c. A burial-transit permit issued for temporary storage is to be retained by the funeral director or authorized person having custody of the body until final disposition. If an endorsed copy is not returned to the municipal clerk who issued it within nine months after the date of death, the clerk shall report the matter to the state registrar and the Board of Funeral Service for investigation.