§606. Commencement and completion requirements; application form; application fee

            A.(1) Prior to the first sale of a cemetery space or the right of use or interment in any cemetery space in a structure which has not yet been constructed, the cemetery authority shall submit to the board all of the following:

            (a) A copy of the preliminary plans.

            (b) A map or plat delineating the sections, blocks, plots, avenues, walks, halls, rooms, corridors, elevations, or other subdivisions, with descriptive name or numbers.

            (c) A copy of all sales promotion material.

            (d) A copy of the pre-construction sales contract.

            (2) The cemetery authority shall submit the information required in this Subsection on an application form prescribed by the board, accompanied by an application fee of two hundred fifty dollars to cover the board's reasonable and ordinary expenses associated with determining compliance with applicable provisions of this Title.

            B. A cemetery authority shall be required to commence construction pursuant to the plans filed with the board within forty-eight months after the date of the first sale of each section of the structure in which sales, contracts for sales, or reservations for sales are being made, and the construction of each such section shall be completed within five years after the date of the first sale. However, extensions not to exceed one year may be granted by the board for reasonable cause. Further extensions may be granted pursuant to Subsection C of this Section. If the structure is not completed within the time specified in this Subsection, all monies paid plus any monetary penalties assessed by the board shall be paid to the purchasers, unless the cemetery authority delivers a completed interment space acceptable to the purchaser in lieu of the interment space purchased.

            C. The board, at its discretion, may grant an extension to the time period set forth in Subsection B of this Section based upon the occurrence of a force majeure event. Such an extension shall be granted only for reasonable cause. Each force majeure event shall be treated as a separate incident.

            D. Failure to commence or complete a section within the time herein required shall be a misdemeanor punishable by fine of not less than two hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment of not less than thirty days nor more than one year, or both.

            Acts 1974, No. 417, §1; Acts 1999, No. 1199, §1; Acts 2004, No. 66, §1; Acts 2010, No. 63, §1; Acts 2015, No. 222, §1; Acts 2022, No. 574, §1.