The Hays City Commission on June 12 adopted Ordinance No. 4,073, approving amendments to Articles 1, 2 and 3 of Chapter 17 of the city code that revise cemetery procedures, clarify headstone and interment requirements and increase several fees that have not been changed in more than 20 years.

Jeff Boyle, Director of Parks, said the code cleanup removes outdated language (for example, references to grazing horses), clarifies requirements that state law requires (including a cemetery certificate signed by the mayor), standardizes notice timelines for interments and disinterments, and adds explicit headstone rules for Memorial Garden Cemetery. "We have not implemented any fee increases in over 20 years," Boyle said, and the proposed changes move many fees to roughly the "mid pack" level compared with peer communities.

Specific operational clarifications include requiring 16 days' notice for interments and 10 days for disinterments, a prohibition on interments on Sundays and city‑recognized holidays, and requiring interment permits to specify the interment type and cremation urn size where applicable so staff can prepare grave openings or confirm columbarium compatibility.

Boyle discussed columbarium disinterments and the practical challenges of removing urns; he said anchor bolts and plates can be difficult to work and often require two staff members. He said the proposed columbarium opening fee and grave opening fees were increased because of the time and staff work involved. Boyle gave examples: the proposed fee to open an existing grave to set an urn is $250 in the proposed schedule, and the city will charge $450 when opening a columbarium niche in some cases; total family cost for a full burial under the proposal would be about $1,040 when combining the space, opening and monument‑setting fees.

Commissioners discussed the scale of increases, particularly for infant spaces, where Boyle said the existing city prices were very low and available inventory at Mount Allen Cemetery is limited. Boyle and the commission agreed to update fee schedules at least every other year.

A motion "to adopt Ordinance number 4,073, approving the proposed amendments to certain sections of articles 1, 2, and 3 in chapter 17 of the city code of ordinances governing city cemeteries as presented" was moved by Commissioner Cunningham and seconded by Commissioner Breuder. The motion passed 4‑0.

Boyle said the city does not expect the cemeteries to become revenue‑positive but expects the increases to move fees closer to peer communities and reduce the subsidy gap. The commission also directed staff to review fee schedules biennially.