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Planning and Building Department, Cemeteries Division, recommending the Board Approve the Final Passage (Second Reading) of Ordinance 5190 to amend County Ordinance Code § 8.20, Cemeteries, Title 8, Public Health and Safety, to revise multiple sections of the Cemeteries Ordinance.
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DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
On December 12, 2023, the Board heard the Introduction of Ordinance 5190 and Continued Final Passage of the Ordinance to January 9, 2024.
On September 19, 2023, the Board provided conceptual approval for Planning and Building Department Cemeteries Division staff to move forward with revisions to County Ordinance Code § 8.20, Cemeteries, Title 8, Public Health and Safety (Cemeteries Ordinance), in accordance with Board of Supervisors Policy A-3, Ordinances - New or Amended.
California Health and Safety Code Section 8115 gives the Board of Supervisors the authority to set standards relating to all cemeteries in the County,
The governing body of any city or county, in the exercise of its police power, may by ordinance prescribe such standards…as it shall determine to be reasonably necessary to protect the public health or safety, assure decent and respectful treatment of human remains, or prevent offensive deterioration of cemetery grounds, structures, and places of interment. Such standards may be made applicable to every public and private cemetery within the city or county.
In addition, Section 8715 describes the reason for establishing this duty at the lower level of government:
The provisions of this article are…necessary…to preserve and keep existing cemeteries as resting places for the dead and to preserve cemeteries from becoming unkempt and places of reproach and desolation in the communities in which they are located.
Planning and Building Department Cemeteries Division staff are proposing revisions to the Cemeteries Ordinance, as outlined on Attachment B and summarized as follows:
1. Updating definitions to remove ones t...
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