The Legislature is in Parkersburg for interims this week. Today, the Judiciary Committee heard about cemetery law.
There are regulations on company cemeteries. However, many cemeteries in West Virginia are privately owned by families and churches. Privately owned cemeteries are exempt from regulations, although many try to abide by the regulations laid out for company cemeteries. Cemetery abandonment, neglect, and damages can arise when there is insufficient funding, staffing, or volunteers to upkeep the cemeteries.
West Virginia has code on cemeteries, but it is a bit scattered and focuses on criminal damage rather than abandonment, neglect, or weather damage.
Ohio code covers abandoned cemeteries by stating that a trustee can turn over the cemetery to a municipality or county by stating that they cannot maintain it. In Kentucky, the Attorney General’s Office handles cemeteries. Pennsylvania allows for 25 citizens in a five-mile radius to petition the township if a cemetery is in disarray. In Maryland, there is a regulatory board for cemeteries and the county/municipality can appropriate or raise funds for cemeteries. Virginia can take over cemeteries with eminent domain if they aren’t being cared for.
If someone in West Virginia needs help with a cemetery that is neglected, damaged, or abandoned, they can contact state or local government, contact the insurance company for the cemetery, reach out to volunteer groups, apply for grants, if a natural disaster – contact FEMA or contact other buyers to purchase the cemetery.
