Expert tells West Virginia lawmakers cemeteries face funding, oversight and climate risks

At a joint House and Senate committee meeting in Parkersburg, an attorney and funeral director identified gaps in state law that he said leave many West Virginia cemeteries at risk from depleted trust funds, declining burials and storm damage.

"We are at a point where there are more and more cemeteries across the country that just can't go on," said Mister Lemasters, the meeting’s presenter, who described his work as counsel to cemetery and funeral associations. He said cemeteries face three common pressures — money, inventory and physical damage — and that existing statutes are scattered and often lack practical takeover mechanisms.

The talk focused on two financial instruments central to cemetery operations: perpetual (endowment) care funds and pre‑need or merchandise trusts. "Perpetual care is typically money that is…