Funeral Consumers Alliance of Texas is pushing for long-overdue rules to protect funeral consumers from unfair practices and overcharges on the worst day of their lives. Here’s their press release:
CONTACT: Jim Bates 817-360-4727
March 25, 2013 Austin, Texas
Rulemaking petition to be presented
to the Texas Funeral Service Commission
Jim Bates, representing the Funeral Consumers Alliance of Texas (FCAT), will appear before the Texas Funeral Service Commission (TFSC) at the Commission’s regular meeting at 9 am, Tuesday, March 26, 2013, at 333 Guadalupe Street, Suite 2-110, Austin, Texas 78701, to publicly present a rulemaking petition to clarify and protect the rights of funeral consumers. On March 21, 2013, Bates submitted to the TFSC a rulemaking petition to update and modernize certain rules that must be followed by funeral vendors in Texas.
The FCAT petition proposes rule changes in four significant areas:
1) Provision of consumer information by TFSC about the absolute legality of home funerals in Texas; including the disposition of a body from medical and skilled nursing facilities directly to family members;
2) Embalming, an unnecessary and costly funeral option that is poorly understood by most
consumers;
3) Quarterly reporting by the TFSC about complaints against funeral vendors in Texas.
4) Requiring funeral vendors with websites to include price lists on their websites.
These rule changes will help families understand what rules apply to funerals in Texas, will
clarify the rules about embalming and its cost, and will better inform all Texans about what
happens to funeral vendors who violate the rules. Additional information available from Jim
Bates at 817-360-4727 or <jimbates@airmail.net>FCAT is a federation of four affiliates of the national Funeral Consumers Alliance: the
Austin Memorial and Burial information Society (AMBIS), the Funeral Consumers Alliance
Funeral Consumers Allianceof San Antonio (FCASATX), the Funeral Consumers Alliance of Houston (FCAH), and the Funeral Consumers Alliance of North Texas (FCANT). All four nonprofit, volunteer-run organizations educate the public about funeral costs, consumer rights when dealing with funeral vendors, and end-of-life options.
