Regulations

What’s your state’s Death Rate? – Above or Below the National Average?

By Funeral Director Daily / February 3, 2026 /

  According to provisional data released from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in January of this year the overall age-adjusted “Death Rate” in the United States for 2025 was about 722 deaths per 100,000 of population.  In the Death Care business we have usually based our historical numbers on a “per 1,000” population number…

Offender to be dis-interred and removed from Fort Sam Houston National Military Cemetery

By Funeral Director Daily / January 30, 2026 /

  Texas Senator John Cornyn authored a bill that was passed by the Senate, the House, and signed into law by President Trump in late December 2025, that was included in the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act.   The bill, as you can see and read in this news video report and print article from…

Veterans’ Affairs recently grants $77 million to state-operated veteran cemeteries

By Funeral Director Daily / January 22, 2026 /

    According to this recent article in Newsweek “The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has awarded more than $77 million in new grants aimed at expanding and improving state-operated Veterans cemeteries.  The funding, announced by the VA in December, supports projects at 20 existing state Veterans cemeteries and includes an establishment grant for Alaska’s…

Cemetery legal dispute ends in disinterment

By Funeral Director Daily / January 15, 2026 /

  A lengthy legal case of about four years that involved a Service Corporation International (SCI) cemetery and also included a well-known and succesful business family has ended in a disinterment ruling of the keepsakes and ashes in the grave according to this article from Oregon Public Broadcasting titled “After cemetery sold the same plot…

Slacking into the New Year

By Funeral Director Daily / January 5, 2026 /

  We’ve noticed at Funeral Director Daily that readership drops by about 33% in the last half of December.  It was particularly noticeable this year as we reached a record of over 21,000 page views in November only to see the latter half of December come in with run-rates of page views at less than…

Bill back on the table to increase Social Security Lump-Sum Death Benefit

By Funeral Director Daily / January 2, 2026 /

  Back in September 2024 Funeral Director Daily let you know that the Social Secuirty Survivor Benefits Equity Act had been introduced to the the United States House of Representatives.  While the bill failed to go anywhere at that time – possibly because of the impending Presidential election and eventual change of leadership – as…

New York audit of state funeral industry finds “Red flags”

By Funeral Director Daily / December 19, 2025 /

    A recent report (November 2025) from the State of New York Department of Health with the results of an audit “which covered April 2019 through November 2023, concluded that the state Department of Health and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene must improve oversight and coordination to address significant…

Missing body causing problems between family and cemetery

By Funeral Director Daily / December 3, 2025 /

    According to details in this article from CBC Canada Royal Air Force glider pilot veteran Gordon Patrick was buried at the Green Acres Cemetery outside of Winnipeg, Manitoba, following his death in 1973.  For whatever reason, probably at least partially because he was estranged from his daughter, Elizabeth Patrick, who lived in Great…

Subject of iconic “Homecoming” photo died on Veterans Day

By Funeral Director Daily / November 28, 2025 /

  This is Thanksgiving weekend — a time to reflect and give thanks for the lives we are living.  Those of you who are old enough will remember back in 1973 a time when our nation gave “Thanks” for our prisoners being returned home, some following years of captivity, from the Vietnam War.   And,…

Happy Thanksgiving — Enjoy, food, family, and football!!!

By Funeral Director Daily / November 27, 2025 /

  This year for my evening devotions I am using a book of daily notes by Billy Graham titled, “Wisdom for Each Day“.  It was in the back of my mind to write something for Thanksgiving for Funeral Director Daily.  Then, I read the November 24 entry from “Wisdom for Each Day” and decided Billy…