§ 141 — Burial of the dead

§ 141. Burial of the dead. 1. (a) If a recipient of public assistance\nor care or other person dies leaving no funds or insurance sufficient to\npay the expense of his burial, the relatives who survive him who were or\nwould have been responsible for his support, pursuant to section one\nhundred one of this chapter, shall be responsible for such expense to\nthe extent that they are able to pay the same in whole or in part; and\nthe public welfare official paying such expense or any part thereof may\nrecover all or part of the amounts expended by him from such relatives,\nwho shall be severally and jointly liable therefor in accordance with\ntheir respective abilities.\n (b) Except as otherwise provided the public welfare district, town or\ncity which was or would have been responsible for furnishing public\nassistance or care to the person while alive shall provide for the care,\nremoval and burial of the body of a recipient of public assistance or\ncare who shall die, or of a person found dead in the public welfare\ndistrict.\n 2. If, when such provision is made by a public welfare district, town\nor city, the deceased leave no funds or insurance sufficient to pay the\nexpense of his burial and there are no known relatives, friends or\npersonal representatives liable or willing to become responsible for\nsuch expense, the expense of such burial shall be a charge on such\npublic welfare district, town or city but the public welfare official\nthereof may recover the same in whole or in part from the relatives of\nthe deceased liable therefor.\n 3. (a) When burial arrangements for a recipient of public assistance\nor care are made by relatives or friends of the deceased and the expense\nof such burial does not exceed the amount fixed by the appropriate\npublic welfare official or the local appropriating body for similar\nburials in similar circumstances, such public welfare official may:\n (1) if such relatives or friends were required to pay the expense of\nsuch burial in order to arrange the same, wholly or partly reimburse\nthem, from assets transferred or assigned to such social services\nofficial by or on behalf of the deceased recipient; but he shall not\nreimburse a legally responsible relative of the deceased for any part of\nthe amount paid by him which in the judgment of such social services\nofficial such relative is able to bear; nor shall such official expend\nfrom such assets for such purpose more than is permitted by or pursuant\nto this section, other provisions of this chapter and regulations of the\ndepartment.\n (2) pay part of the expense of such burial, if, and to the extent and\nunder the circumstances, permitted by his local policy, which shall not\nbe inconsistent with this chapter, and the regulations of the\ndepartment; but in no case shall such social services official pay more\nthan the balance remaining to be paid after the total of the amounts\npaid or to be paid by all other sources, including payments made or to\nbe made by such legally responsible relatives of the deceased as are in\nthe judgment of such official able to bear the same, is credited to and\ndeducted from such expense.\n (b) In no case shall a public welfare official expend, pursuant to the\nprovisions of this section or any other provision of this chapter, for\nthe burial of a recipient of public assistance or care, from assets\ntransferred or assigned to him by or on behalf of such recipient, an\namount which shall be in excess of five hundred dollars.\n 4. For purposes of this section, the term "recipient of public\nassistance and care" shall include persons receiving federal\nsupplemental security income benefits pursuant to title sixteen of the\nfederal social security act and/or additional state payments pursuant to\ntitle six of article five of this chapter.\n 5. Expenditures for burial made by social services districts, cities\nand towns pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall, if approved\nby the department, be subject to reimbursement by the state, in\naccordance with the regulations of the department to the extent of one\nhundred per centum thereof in the case of needy Native Americans and\nmembers of their families residing on a reservation within the state and\nfifty per centum in all other cases, and such reimbursement shall be\nclaimed and paid in accordance with the procedure prescribed by and\npursuant to section one hundred fifty-three. However, only so much of\nsuch an expenditure as does not exceed two hundred fifty dollars for\nexpenditures made prior to October first, nineteen hundred eighty-six,\nfour hundred dollars for expenditures made on and after October first,\nnineteen hundred eighty-six and prior to April first, nineteen hundred\neighty-seven and nine hundred dollars for expenditures made on and after\nApril first, nineteen hundred eighty-seven shall be subject to\nreimbursement by the state.\n 6. If an applicant for or a recipient of public assistance or care or\nof medical assistance under section two hundred nine or three hundred\nsixty-six of this chapter establishes an irrevocable trust for the\npayment of his or her funeral expenses, or those of a family member,\nunder section four hundred fifty-three of the general business law, any\nfunds remaining in such trust after the payment of all funeral expenses\nmust be paid over to the social services official responsible for\narranging for burials under this section in the local government\nsubdivision where the decedent resided.\n