Colorado is the only state without direct regulation of funeral service practitioners. In 1983, its 70-year-old licensing board was abolished and the Colorado Funeral Directors Association continues to file application for its reinstatement. Today, the state's Office of Policy, Research and Regulatory Reform released a sunrise report on Funeral Practitioners. It finds that if existing federal, state and local regulation of the four practice areas involved (Funeral Directors, Embalmers, Cremationists, and Mortuary Science Practitioners) were properly used, the public is already sufficiently protected from harm. It recommends requiring a Funeral Director at each funeral establishment to register with the Division of Registrations and each establishment to provide consumers with contact information for formal complaints. Read the report.
