Senate Bill 358 amends the statutes regarding fees charged by counties for coroner or medical examiner services. The bill introduces an exception to the current law that limits fee increases to the annual percentage change in the U.S. consumer price index. Specifically, it allows counties that transition from providing coroner or lay medical examiner services to physician medical examiner services between December 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, to set the fees for signing death records and issuing cremation permits at an amount exceeding the rates in effect on April 17, 2015, by up to $100. This exception does not apply to counties with populations over 300,000.

The bill also removes the previous requirement that the fee adjustments be made under an intergovernmental cooperation agreement and updates the timeframe for when the transition to physician medical examiner services must occur. This legislative change aims to provide counties with greater flexibility in setting fees for essential services related to death records and cremation permits, thereby potentially improving the financial sustainability of these services.

Statutes affected:
Bill Text: 59.365(3)(a), 59.365
Text as Enrolled: 59.365(3)(a), 59.365