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Wednesday, 22 February 2012 16:56 |
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PIERRE, S.D. (AP) _ The South Dakota Senate has approved a bill
allowing counties to choose to cremate deceased poor people.
Counties pay funeral and burial expenses when a destitute
resident dies and no one else is available to pay the costs. The
Senate voted unanimously Wednesday to approve a bill that would
give counties the option of cremating indigent people who die.
The bill next returns to the House, which will decide whether to
approve a change made by the Senate.
The bill says a destitute person's next of kin could decide
whether that person is buried or cremated. When a destitute Native
American dies, the person's tribe could make that decision.
If no next of kin or tribe is available, county commissioners
would decide whether someone is buried or cremated.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) |
