Olson v. STATE MORTUARY AND CEMETERY BD.

216 P.3d 325, 230 Or. App. 376, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 1125
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedAugust 19, 2009
DocketA136781 (Control) 125514 A136782 125515
StatusPublished

This text of 216 P.3d 325 (Olson v. STATE MORTUARY AND CEMETERY BD.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Olson v. STATE MORTUARY AND CEMETERY BD., 216 P.3d 325, 230 Or. App. 376, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 1125 (Or. Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

*378 LANDAU, P. J.

Petitioners Hofsess-Olson, LLC, dba Myrtle Creek Family Funeral Home, and Fred S. Olson, its manager and director, seek judicial review of an order of the State Mortuary and Cemetery Board determining that petitioners committed 88 violations of state and federal funeral service regulations, arising out of petitioners’ pricing and billing practices. The board revoked petitioners’ licenses and fined them $500 for each violation, for a total of $44,000. On review, petitioners advance eight different assignments of error, ranging from a challenge to the authority of the board to enforce federal funeral service regulations at all to arguments about the propriety of the board’s interpretation and application of state and federal funeral service regulations in various particulars. We reject each of petitioners’ assignments of error and affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Regulatory Framework

To understand the board’s order and our resolution of the parties’ contentions about it requires some background regarding the statutory and administrative framework for the regulation of funeral services.

The regulation of the funeral industry began as a purely state concern. The Oregon legislature created a State Mortuary and Cemetery Board, which was authorized to regulate the licensing and practice of embalming and funeral services, as provided in ORS chapter 692. Among other things, the legislature required licensees not to engage in misrepresentation in the conduct of business or in obtaining a license. ORS 692.180(l)(a). It also required licensees to refrain from engaging in fraudulent or dishonest conduct related to the operation of a funeral service practice, the operation of an embalming practice, or the operation of a cemetery or crematorium. ORS 692.180(l)(b). The legislature further authorized the board to investigate any complaint concerning a licensee and, if the board finds that the licensee violated any applicable industry standards, authorized the board to impose a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 per *379 violation, suspend or revoke the license, or refuse to grant or renew a license. ORS 692.180(1).

Meanwhile, the United States Congress enacted the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1982, 15 USC § 45 (1982), which prohibits “unfair or deceptive acts or practices,” 15 USC § 45(a)(1), and directs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to make rules and regulations to prohibit such practices, 15 USC § 46(g). In response to that directive, in 1984, the FTC produced what has come to be known as “the Funeral Rule.” 16 CFR § 453 (1984). The rule became effective in April 1984. It defines what acts constitute “unfair or deceptive acts or practices” in the context of the funeral services industry:

“In selling or offering to sell funeral goods or funeral services to the public, it is an unfair or deceptive act or practice for a funeral provider to fail to furnish accurate price information disclosing the cost to the purchaser for each of the specific funeral goods and funeral services used in connection with the disposition of deceased human bodies, including at least the price of embalming, transportation of remains, use of facilities, caskets, outer burial containers, immediate burials, or direct cremations, to persons inquiring about the purchase of funerals.”

16 CFR § 453.2(a). The FTC Funeral Rule also establishes “preventive requirements” designed to prevent a funeral provider from committing unfair or deceptive acts or practices. The rule declares that any funeral provider that complies with those preventive requirements is not engaged in unfair or deceptive acts or practices. Id. Among the preventive requirements listed in the rule are that providers give a “general price list” (GPL) specifying the goods and services to be provided and the prices for each:

“Preventive requirements. To prevent these unfair or deceptive acts or practices * * *, funeral providers must:
«Hi ❖ Hí ‡
“(4) General price list
“(i)(A) Give a printed or typewritten price list for retention to persons who inquire in person about the funeral goods, funeral services or prices of funeral goods or *380 services offered by the funeral provider. The funeral provider must give the list upon beginning discussion of any of the following:
“(1) The prices of funeral goods or funeral services;
“(2) The overall type of funeral service or disposition; or
“(3) Specific funeral goods or funeral services offered by the funeral provider.
«íH * * * *
“(5) Statement of funeral goods and services selected.
“(i) Give an itemized written statement for retention to each person who arranges a funeral or other disposition of human remains, at the conclusion of the discussion of arrangements. The statement must list at least the following information:
“(A) The funeral goods and funeral services selected by that person and the prices to be paid for each of them;
“(B) Specifically itemized cash advance items * * *; and
“(C) The total cost of the goods and services selected.
“(ii) The information required by this paragraph (b)(5) may be included on any contract, statement, or other document which the funeral provider would otherwise provide at the conclusion of discussion of arrangements.
“(6) Other pricing methods. Funeral providers may give persons any other price information, in any other format, in addition to that required by § 453.2(b)(2), (3), and (4) so long as the statement required by § 453.2(b)(5) is given when required by the rule.”

16 CFR § 453.2(b). In addition, the FTC Funeral Rule provides that certain practices constitute “deceptive acts or practices”:

“In selling or offering to sell funeral goods or funeral services to the public, it is a deceptive act or practice for funeral providers to represent that federal, state, or local laws, or particular cemeteries or crematories, require the purchase of any funeral goods or funeral services when such is not the case.”

*381

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Related

Advocates for Effective Regulation v. City of Eugene
981 P.2d 368 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1999)

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Bluebook (online)
216 P.3d 325, 230 Or. App. 376, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 1125, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/olson-v-state-mortuary-and-cemetery-bd-orctapp-2009.